Report on Hong Kong

Introduction | Geography | People | Government | Economy| Communications | Transportation | Military | Transnational Issues

Occupied by the UK in 1841, Hong Kong was formally ceded by China the following year; various adjacent lands were added later in the 19th century. Pursuant to an agreement signed by China and the UK on 19 December 1984, Hong Kong became the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China on 1 July 1997. In this agreement, China has promised that, under its "one country, two systems" formula, China's socialist economic system will not be practiced in Hong Kong and that Hong Kong will enjoy a high degree of autonomy in all matters except foreign and defense affairs for the next 50 years.

Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China

22 15 N, 114 10 E

Southeast Asia

Area:

total:  1,092 sq km

land:  1,042 sq km

water:  50 sq km

six times the size of Washington, DC

total:  30 km

border countries:  China 30 km

733 km

territorial sea:  3 NM

tropical monsoon; cool and humid in winter, hot and rainy from spring through summer, warm and sunny in fall

hilly to mountainous with steep slopes; lowlands in north

lowest point:  South China Sea 0 m

highest point:  Tai Mo Shan 958 m

outstanding deepwater harbor, feldspar

arable land:  6%

permanent crops:  1%

permanent pastures:  1%

forests and woodland:  20%

other:  72% (1997 est.)

20 sq km (1997 est.)

occasional typhoons

air and water pollution from rapid urbanization

party to:  Marine Dumping (associate member), Ship Pollution (associate member)

more than 200 islands

7,210,505 (July 2001 est.)

0-14 years:  17.73% (male 677,785; female 600,781)

15-64 years:  71.52% (male 2,554,329; female 2,602,662)

65 years and over:  10.75% (male 354,199; female 420,749) (2001 est.)

1.3% (2001 est.)

11.13 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)

6.02 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)

7.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)

at birth:  1.07 male(s)/female

under 15 years:  1.13 male(s)/female

15-64 years:  0.98 male(s)/female

65 years and over:  0.84 male(s)/female

total population:  0.99 male(s)/female (2001 est.)

5.83 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)

total population:  79.67 years

male:  76.97 years

female:  82.55 years (2001 est.)

1.29 children born/woman (2001 est.)

0.06% (1999 est.)

2,500 (1999 est.)

less than 100 (1999 est.)

noun:  Chinese

adjective:  Chinese

Chinese 95%, other 5%

eclectic mixture of local religions 90%, Christian 10%

Chinese (Cantonese), English; both are official

definition:  age 15 and over has ever attended school

total population:  92.2%

male:  96%

female:  88.2% (1996 est.)

conventional long form:  Hong Kong Special Administrative Region

conventional short form:  Hong Kong

local long form:  Xianggang Tebie Xingzhengqu

local short form:  Xianggang

abbreviation:  HK

special administrative region of China

NA

none (special administrative region of China)

none (special administrative region of China)

National Day (Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China), 1 October (1949); note - 1 July 1997 is celebrated as Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Establishment Day

Basic Law approved in March 1990 by China's National People's Congress is Hong Kong's "mini-constitution"

based on English common law

direct election 18 years of age; universal for permanent residents living in the territory of Hong Kong for the past seven years; indirect election limited to about 100,000 members of functional constituencies and an 800-member election committee drawn from broad regional groupings, municipal organizations, and central government bodies

chief of state:  President of China JIANG Zemin (since 27 March 1993)

head of government:  Chief Executive TUNG Chee-hwa (since 1 July 1997)

cabinet:  Executive Council consists of three ex-officio members and 10 appointed members; ex-officio members are: Chief Secretary Donald TSANG Yam-kuen (since 1 May 2001), Financial Secretary Antony LEUNG (since 1 May 2001), and Secretary of Justice Elsie LEUNG (since 1 July 1997)

elections:  NA

unicameral Legislative Council or LEGCO (60 seats; 30 indirectly elected by functional constituencies, 24 elected by popular vote, and 6 elected by an 800-member election committee; members serve four-year terms)

elections:  last held 10 September 2000 (next to be held NA 2004)

election results:  percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Democratic Party 12, Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong 10, Liberal Party 7, Frontier Party 5, Hong Kong Progressive Alliance 4, New Century Forum 2, Hong Kong Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood 1, independents 19

The Court of Final Appeal in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region

Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood [Frederick FUNG Kin-kee, chairman]; Citizens Party [leader NA]; Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong [Jasper TSANG Yok-sing, chairman]; Democratic Party [Martin LEE Chu-ming, chairman]; Frontier Party [Emily LAU Wai-hing, chairwoman]; Hong Kong Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood [leader NA]; Hong Kong Progressive Alliance [Ambrose LAU Hon-chuen]; Liberal Party [James TIEN Pei-chun, chairman]; New Century Forum [NQ Ching-fai, chairman]

note:  political blocs include: pro-democracy - Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood, Citizens Party, Democratic Party, Frontier Party; pro-Beijing - Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Progressive Alliance, Liberal Party, New Century Forum

Chinese General Chamber of Commerce (pro-China); Chinese Manufacturers' Association of Hong Kong; Confederation of Trade Unions (pro-democracy) [LAU Chin-shek, president; LEE Cheuk-yan, general secretary]; Federation of Hong Kong Industries; Federation of Trade Unions (pro-China) [LEE Chark-tim, president]; Hong Kong Alliance in Support of the Patriotic Democratic Movement in China [Szeto WAH, chairman]; Hong Kong and Kowloon Trade Union Council (pro-Taiwan); Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce; Hong Kong Professional Teachers' Union [CHEUNG Man-kwong, president]; Liberal Democratic Federation [HU Fa-kuang, chairman]

APEC, AsDB, BIS, CCC, ESCAP (associate), ICC, ICFTU, IMO (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, ISO (correspondent), WCL, WMO, WToO (associate), WTrO

none (special administrative region of China)

chief of mission:  Consul General Michael KLOSSON

consulate(s) general:  26 Garden Road, Hong Kong

mailing address:  PSC 464, Box 30, FPO AP 96522-0002

telephone:  [852] 2523-9011

FAX:  [852] 2845-1598

red with a stylized, white, five-petal bauhinia flower in the center

Hong Kong has a bustling free market economy highly dependent on international trade. Natural resources are limited, and food and raw materials must be imported. Indeed, imports and exports, including reexports, each exceed GDP in dollar value. Even before Hong Kong reverted to Chinese administration on 1 July 1997 it had extensive trade and investment ties with China. Per capita GDP compares with the level in the four big countries of Western Europe. GDP growth averaged a strong 5% in 1989-97. The widespread Asian economic difficulties in 1998 hit this trade-dependent economy quite hard, with GDP down 5%. The economy is undergoing a rapid recovery, with growth of 10% in 2000 to be followed by projected growth of 5% in 2001.

purchasing power parity - $181 billion (2000 est.)

10% (2000 est.)

purchasing power parity - $25,400 (2000 est.)

agriculture:  0.1%

industry:  14.3%

services:  85.6% (1999 est.)

NA%

lowest 10%:  NA%

highest 10%:  NA%

3.7% (2000 est.)

3.39 million (2000 est.)

wholesale and retail trade, restaurants, and hotels 31.5%, community and social services 24%, financing, insurance, and real estate 14.5%, transport and communications 11.6%, manufacturing 7.7%, construction 2.6% (October 1999)

4.5% (2000 est.)

revenues:  $20.8 billion

expenditures:  $24.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY99/00)

textiles, clothing, tourism, electronics, plastics, toys, watches, clocks

2.1% (2000)

27.726 billion kWh (1999)

fossil fuel:  100%

hydro:  0%

nuclear:  0%

other:  0% (1999)

32.202 billion kWh (1999)

633 million kWh (1999)

7.05 billion kWh (1999)

fresh vegetables; poultry

$204 billion (including reexports; f.o.b., 2000 est.)

clothing, textiles, footwear, electrical appliances, watches and clocks, toys

China 33%, US 24%, Japan 5%, UK 4%, Germany, Singapore (1999)

$215 billion (f.o.b., 2000)

foodstuffs, transport equipment, raw materials, semimanufactures, petroleum; a large share is reexported

China 44%, Japan 12%, US 7%, Taiwan 7%, South Korea, Singapore (1999)

$48.1 billion (1999)

Hong Kong dollar (HKD)

HKD

Hong Kong dollars per US dollar - 7.7990 (January 2001), 7.7912 (2000), 7.7575 (1999), 7.7453 (1998), 7.7421 (1997), 7.7343 (1996); note - Hong Kong became a special administrative region of China on 1 July 1997; before then, the Hong Kong dollar was linked to the US dollar at the rate of about 7.8 Hong Kong dollars per US dollar

1 April - 31 March

3.839 million (1999)

3.7 million (December 1999)

general assessment:  modern facilities provide excellent domestic and international services

domestic:  microwave radio relay links and extensive fiber-optic network

international:  satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Pacific Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean); coaxial cable to Guangzhou, China; access to 5 international submarine cables providing connections to ASEAN member nations, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, Middle East, and Western Europe

AM 7, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998)

4.45 million (1997)

4 (plus two repeaters) (1997)

1.84 million (1997)

.hk

17 (2000)

1.85 million (2000)

total:  34 km

standard gauge:  34 km 1.435-m gauge (electrified and double-track)

note:  connects to China railway system at Hong Kong-China border (2001)

total:  1,831 km

paved:  1,831 km

unpaved:  0 km (1997)

none

Hong Kong

total:  354 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 10,330,662 GRT/17,227,315 DWT

ships by type:  barge carrier 1, bulk 208, cargo 36, chemical tanker 7, combination bulk 2, container 59, liquefied gas 6, multi-functional large-load carrier 2, petroleum tanker 26, refrigerated cargo 3, short-sea passenger 1, vehicle carrier 3

note:  includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Bermuda 2, Belgium 1, Canada 2, China 9, Japan 3, Mongolia 1, Norway 1, South Africa 1, UK 7 (2000 est.)

3 (2000 est.)

total:  3

over 3,047 m:  2

1,524 to 2,437 m:  1 (2000 est.)

2 (2000 est.)

Hong Kong garrison of China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) including elements of the PLA Ground Forces, PLA Navy, and PLA Air Force; these forces are under the direct leadership of the Central Military Commission in Beijing and under administrative control of the adjacent Guangzhou Military Region

18 years of age

males age 15-49:  2,020,937 (2001 est.)

males age 15-49:  1,520,531 (2001 est.)

males:  47,139 (2001 est.)

$NA; note - separate budget for Hong Kong not established by China

NA%

defense is the responsibility of China

none

a hub for Southeast Asian heroin and regional stimulants trade; transshipment and money-laundering center; increasing indigenous amphetamine abuse