ENG-2014 — Page 71

M

The Economy

between the Mainland and the world through Hong Kong have flourished and brought significant mutual benefits in the two places.

With its total trade surging from US$237 billion in 1994 to US$4.3 trillion in 2014, the Mainland plays an increasingly prominent role in the global economy and Hong Kong has benefited substantially from the Mainland's phenomenal trade growth. Visible trade between Hong Kong and the Mainland in 2014 was about five times that of 20 years ago, representing growth of 8 per cent per annum in value terms (Chart 5). In 2014, the Mainland was ranked the world's largest trading entity and Hong Kong was ranked the eighth.

Chart 5

Goods Trade between Hong Kong and the Mainland

HK$ Billion

4,000

Total trade value (left scale)

Year-on-year rate of change (right scale)

3,500

3,000

2,500

2,000

Per cent

35

30

سلسل سلسال

25

20

15

10

5

-5

1,500

-10

-15

1,000

-20

500

-25

1994 1996 1998

Merchandise trade between Hong Kong and the Mainland registered notable cumulative growth in the past two decades.

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014

The Mainland has long been Hong Kong's largest trading partner. Bilateral trade with the Mainland accounted for more than half of Hong Kong's total trade value in 2014. On the other hand, Hong Kong is the Mainland's second largest trading partner only after the US, accounting for about 8.7 per cent of the Mainland's total trade value in 2014. Nearly half of Hong Kong's exports to the Mainland (mainly re-exports) in 2014 involved raw materials, reflecting the latter's role as a production hinterland and the highly integrated production network within Asia. Also, Hong Kong's exports of consumer goods (mainly re-exports) to the Mainland increased by nearly 70 per cent over the past decade. With a population of close to 1.4 billion (over 100 million in Guangdong Province alone) and the Central People's Government's goal to restructure economic growth towards domestic consumption, the Mainland market represents a huge business opportunity for Hong Kong's exporters.

Hong Kong also serves as a principal gateway to and from the Mainland for business and tourism. In 2014, foreign visitors to the Mainland made 3.7 million trips through Hong Kong. The number of trips made by Mainland residents to or through Hong Kong grew by 16 per cent to 47.2 million over the same period.

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