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The Economy
economies, Hong Kong's productive capacity has been effectively expanded. Its well- established linkages with the Mainland economy have underpinned the growth of Hong Kong's services sector, especially the rapid development of trading, financial and other supporting
services.
The increasing service orientation of the economy was also borne out by a shift in the sectoral composition of employment. Over the past two decades, the share of the services sector in total employment increased from 76 per cent in 1994 to 86 per cent in 2004 and 88 per cent in 2014. As for individual service segments, import/export trade and wholesale, retail, accommodation and food services accounted for 32 per cent of the total in 2014. This was followed by public administration, social and personal services with a share of 26 per cent; financing and insurance, real estate, professional and business services, 20 per cent; and transportation, storage, postal and courier services, information and communications, 11 per cent (Chart 4).
Chart 4
Wholesale, retail and import/export trades, restaurants and hotels 34.89%
Other sectors 24.2%
Employment by Major Service Sector
2014 Transportation, storage, postal and courier services, information and
1994
Transport, storage and communications
11.4%
Finance, insurance,
real estate and business services 10.9%
communications
11.4%
Financing
and insurance, real estate, professional and business services
19.7%
Community, social and personal services
Import/export, wholesale and retail trades,
18.7%
accommodation and food services 31.5%
Other
sectors 11.5%
Public administration, social and
personal services 25.9%
Import/export trade and wholesale, retail, accommodation and food services employed the most people in 2014.
Notes: The compilation methodology of composite employment estimates was reviewed in June 2005. Employment figures from 1996 onwards have thus been revised accordingly. They are not strictly comparable with those of earlier years.
Starting from the first quarter of 2009, industrial classification of employment has adopted the Hong Kong Standard Industrial Classification Version 2.0 while that in the previous years is based on Version 1.1.
Economic Links between Hong Kong and the Mainland
Following several decades of reform and opening-up in the Mainland, the economic ties between the Mainland and Hong Kong has been stronger than ever. Throughout the period, the flows of goods, services, people and capital between Hong Kong and the Mainland and
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