SPEAKING NOTE
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the United Kingdom is particularly concerned at the implications for Hong Kong (a UK dependent territory) of the threat by the United States to increase duties on a range of imports from the People's Republic of China under the current Section 301 action.
Such increases would have seriously adverse consequences for Hong Kong, whose economy is heavily dependent on entrepot trade with the PRC. As the Hong Kong Government has already pointed out, 62% of the products listed for increased duties are re-exported through Hong Kong $2.4 billion out of the total of $3.9 billion of products on the list.
Hong Kong estimates that if the increased duties were implemented to the full extent, trade would fall by $4.5
billion, leading to the loss of 16,000 jobs and a drop of 0.7% in GDP growth.
The United Kingdom therefore hopes that the United States will reach a negotiated settlement with the PRC without recourse to measures to restrict trade. If the United States were to implement such measures, every effort should be made to minimise the effect on Hong Kong.
Hong Kong has everything to gain from freer trade between the US and PRC and better access to the PRC market. It does not deserve to suffer economic damage from measures intended to increase access to the PRC market because of its position as the principal entrepot for trade with that market.