Overseas Trade Services
UK/HONG KONG TRADE AND INVESTMENT
KEY POINTS
Hong Kong is still the UK's strongest base in the Far East, though in many respects rivalled by Singapore. Our involvement in Hong Kong touches almost every sector of the economy. The main UK commercial interests in Hong Kong are:
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As a market for direct exports: it is UK's 13th largest export market, with exports in 1992 of £1,612m, an increase of 16% over 1991 (compared with an increase of only 3.3% for UK exports to the world). The 1.5% of our total exports which went to Hong Kong in 1992 is almost four times as much as we sold direct to China and over half as much as we sold to Japan, which has an economy 49 times the size of Hong Kong's. UK imports from Hong Kong were £2,397m in 1992.
As a market for services: UK companies have a very large presence in Hong Kong's invisibles sector, with revenue estimated to be at least equal to the value of UK'S visible exports.
As a location for investment: British investment and managerial involvement are a major overseas influence in Hong Kong business. UK statistics record a net stock of over £1.7 bln of direct investment (local business estimates the total net assets of UK companies controlled from Britain as at least £6 bn and the total gross stock market value of the leading British owned, controlled or managed companies at over £50 bn). UK is the 5th largest investor in Hong Kong's (relatively small) domestic manufacturing industry. [NB UK statistics record a disinvestment of £250m for Hong Kong in 1990, the latest available data.]
As a gateway into Southern China. 3 million workers are employed in some 19,000 Hong Kong factories in Guangdong Province, compared with a manufacturing workforce of under 700,000 in Hong Kong itself. UK has only
2 manufacturing investments of significant size in Southern China - United Biscuits (biscuits) and Tootal (textile goods). Shell have signed an MOU for the construction of an oil refinery which will be the largest single overseas investment in China.
UK commitment to Hong Kong reflected in the many major UK retailers who have opened stores in Hong Kong in the last few years. (Marks and Spencer for example opened a fifth store in the territory in October 1992 and are planning further stores). Yet there is more to do here.
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dti
the department for Enterprise
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