THE ECONOMY
rising distinctly from 51 per cent in 1982 to 69 per cent in 1992 and further to 84 per cent in the first three quarters of 2002. Yet the corresponding share for the manufacturing sector kept on shrinking, from 38 per cent in 1982 to 22 per cent in 1992 and further to only 6 per cent in the first three quarters of 2002 (Chart 3).
Chart 3
Employment by broad economic sector
Secondary production
46.9%
1982
Tertiary production 51.1%
2002*
Secondary production 15.5%
Primary production 2.0%
Primary production 0.4%
Tertiary production 84.0%
Consequential to the ongoing relocation of the less skill-intensive and lower value-added manufacturing processes to the Mainland, as well as the strong growth in service activities in Hong Kong, the tertiary services sector has expanded markedly and overtaken the secondary sector to become the largest employer in the economy since 1981.
* Average of Q1 to 03 2002.
The Services Sector
The services sector has not only flourished but also diversified in types of activities, concomitant with the structural transformation of the economy. Trade-related and tourism-related services, community, social and personal services, and finance and business services such as banking, insurance, real estate and a host of related professional services, have all grown distinctly over the past two decades. Strong expansion was also observed in information technology in the more recent years, especially those pertaining to telecommunications services and Internet applications, in line with the shift in economic structure more towards a knowledge-based economy. On trade in services, exports and imports of services both grew by an annual average of 7 per cent in real terms over the past two decades. In 2001, civil aviation, travel and tourism, trade-related services, and various financial and banking services were the largest components of trade in services. Within exports of services, offshore trading and purchasing/merchandising services were the most important component, accounting for 33 per cent of the total value in 2001. This was followed by transportation (with a share of 29 per cent), travel and tourism (20 per cent), and financial and banking services (7 per cent). As to imports of services, travel and tourism were the largest component, accounting for 50 per cent of the total value in
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