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HISTORY
The Post-war Years
Following the Japanese surrender, Chinese civilians many of whom had moved into China during the war- returned at the rate of almost 100 000 a month. The population, which by August 1945 had been reduced to about 600 000, rose by the end of 1947 to an estimated 1.8 million. Then, in the period 1948-49, as the forces of the Chinese Nationalist Government began to face defeat in civil war at the hands of the communists, Hong Kong received an influx unparalleled in its history. Hundreds of thousands of people -- mainly from Kwangtung (Guangdong) Province, Shanghai and other commercial centres - entered the territory during 1949 and the spring of 1950. By mid-1950, the population had swelled to an estimated 2.2 million. Since then, it has continued to rise and now stands at over six million.
After a period of economic stagnation caused by the United Nations' embargo on trade with China, Hong Kong began to industrialise. No longer could the territory rely solely on its port to provide prosperity for its greatly increased population. From the start, the industrial revolution was based on cotton textiles, gradually adding woollens and, in the late 1960s, man-made fibres and made-up garments to the list. Although the share of total exports held by textiles and clothing has declined over the past 10 years, these still make up around 40 per cent of domestic exports by value. While textiles and clothing remain the mainstay of Hong Kong's manufacturing sector, major contributions are made by electronic products, watches and clocks, printing and other light industries.
Associated with events in China, 1966 saw mounting tension in Hong Kong. During 1967, this developed into a series of civil disturbances, affecting all aspects of life and temporarily paralysing the economy. But, by the year's end, the disturbances were contained and the community continued its tradition of peaceful progress.
In the post-war years, Hong Kong continued to expand its role as an entrepôt with its neighbours and trade with China was no exception. Coupled with tourism, this led to vast improvements in communications, with an increasing number of people entering China from or through Hong Kong, a natural gateway, each year. One of the territory's carriers, Hong Kong Dragon Airlines, and three Chinese airlines China Southern Airlines, Air China and China Eastern Airlines operate both scheduled and non-scheduled services between Hong Kong and cities in China. Additionally, three other Chinese airlines - China Southwest Airlines, China Northern Airlines and China Northwest Airlines --
operate non- scheduled services between Hong Kong and destinations in China. The Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation runs, jointly with the Guangzhou Railway (Group) Corporation, four daily 'through' trains in each direction between Kowloon and Guangzhou, and one daily 'through' train in each direction between Kowloon and Foshan. A number of direct bus services operate different routes into Guangdong and other parts of southern China. There are also daily ferry services to Guangzhou and other ports in South China.
To keep pace with the development, strong emphasis is placed by the government on infrastructural improvements. As a result, the territory has been transformed into a modern city with efficient road and rail links, tunnels and flyovers, as well as multi-lane highways which have opened up previously remote areas.
The development of Hong Kong's economic base has enabled the government to increase spending on housing, education, social welfare and health over the years - from $17,508 million in 1984-85 to an estimated $77,880 million in 1994–95.