Tag Archives: China

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:

     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) wishes to alert members of the public to a press release issued by Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd. relating to a fraudulent website, which has been reported to the HKMA. A hyperlink to the press release is available on the HKMA website.
      
     The HKMA wishes to remind the public that banks will not send SMS or emails with embedded hyperlinks which direct them to the banks’ websites to carry out transactions. They will not ask customers for sensitive personal information, such as login passwords or one-time password, by phone, email or SMS (including via embedded hyperlinks).
      
     Anyone who has provided his or her personal information, or who has conducted any financial transactions, through or in response to the website concerned, should contact the bank using the contact information provided in the press release, and report the matter to the Police by contacting the Crime Wing Information Centre of the Hong Kong Police Force at 2860 5012. read more

     A man who went missing in Tsuen Wan has been located.      Lo Ka-leung, aged 67, went missing after he was last seen at a bus stop on Castle Peak Road – Tsuen Wan yesterday (March 16) night. His… read more

     The Census and Statistics Department (C&SD) published today (March 17) the March 2025 issue of the “Hong Kong Monthly Digest of Statistics” (HKMDS).
 
     Apart from providing up-to-date statistics, this issue also contains two feature articles entitled “Analysis of Hong Kong’s External Merchandise Trade by Mode of Transport” and “The Profile of Persons Residing in Private Elderly Homes in 2024”.
 
“Analysis of Hong Kong’s External Merchandise Trade by Mode of Transport”
 
     External merchandise trade is one of the important economic activities in Hong Kong. Goods are brought into or out of Hong Kong by various means of transport. In terms of the value of goods, air and land are the two main modes of transport of Hong Kong’s external merchandise trade, together accounting for 88.4% of Hong Kong’s total value of trade in goods in 2024. Ocean and river accounted for 9.7% and 1.5% respectively.
 
     This feature article analyses the performance and characteristics of Hong Kong’s external merchandise trade by mode of transport during the period from 2014 to 2024.
 
     For enquiries about this feature article, please contact the Trade Analysis Section of the C&SD (Tel: 2582 4914; email: trade@censtatd.gov.hk).
 
“The Profile of Persons Residing in Private Elderly Homes in 2024”
 
     A survey was conducted by the C&SD during July to August 2024 to collect the age-sex profile of persons residing in private elderly homes (PEH). Results of the survey together with some other administrative records are used in the General Household Survey to estimate the age-sex profile of the land-based non-institutional population of Hong Kong. This feature article gives a brief account of the results of the 2024 round of the Annual Survey on Profile of Inmates of PEH.
 
     For enquiries about this feature article, please contact the General Household Survey Section (3) of the C&SD (Tel: 2887 5208; email: ghs@censtatd.gov.hk).
 
     Published in bilingual form, the HKMDS is a compact volume of official statistics containing about 130 tables. It collects up-to-date statistical series on various aspects of the social and economic situation of Hong Kong. Topics include population; labour; external trade; National Income and Balance of Payments; prices; business performance; energy; housing and property; government accounts, finance and insurance; and transport, communications and tourism. For selected key statistical items, over 20 charts depicting the annual trend in the past decade and quarterly or monthly trend in the recent two years are also available. Users can download the Digest at the website of the C&SD (www.censtatd.gov.hk/en/EIndexbySubject.html?pcode=B1010002&scode=460).
 
     Enquiries about the contents of the Digest can be directed to the Statistical Information Dissemination Section (1) of the C&SD (Tel: 2582 4738; email: gen-enquiry@censtatd.gov.hk). read more

     Further to the external merchandise trade statistics in value terms for January 2025 released earlier on, the Census and Statistics Department (C&SD) released today (March 17) the volume and price statistics of external merchandise trade for that month.
 
     In January 2025, the volume of Hong Kong’s total exports of goods and imports of goods decreased by 2.0% and 1.7% respectively over January 2024. Due to the difference in timing of the Lunar New Year holidays, it is more appropriate to analyse the trade figures for January and February taken together in making year-on-year comparison.
 
     Comparing the three months ending January 2025 with the three months ending January 2024, the volume of Hong Kong’s total exports of goods and imports of goods decreased by 0.1% and 0.8% respectively.
 
     Comparing the three-month period ending January 2025 with the preceding three months on a seasonally adjusted basis, the volume of total exports of goods and imports of goods increased by 2.7% and 0.3% respectively.
 
     Changes in volume of external merchandise trade are derived from changes in external merchandise trade value with the effect of price changes discounted.
 
     Comparing January 2025 with January 2024, the prices of total exports of goods and imports of goods both increased by 2.0%.
 
     Price changes in external merchandise trade are reflected by changes in unit value indices of external merchandise trade, which are compiled based on average unit values or, for certain commodities, specific price data.
 
     The terms of trade index is derived from the ratio of price index of total exports of goods to that of imports of goods.  Compared with the same period in 2024, the index remained virtually unchanged in January 2025.
 
     Changes in the unit value and volume of total exports of goods by main destination are shown in Table 1.
 
     Comparing January 2025 with January 2024, declines were recorded for the total export volume to India (-22.1%), the mainland of China (the Mainland) (-3.6%) and Taiwan (-2.2%). On the other hand, the total export volume to the USA (12.2%) and Vietnam (65.9%) increased.
 
     Over the same period of comparison, the total export prices to Vietnam (4.0%), Taiwan (4.0%), the USA (2.4%) and the Mainland (1.6%) increased. On the other hand, the total export prices to India decreased by 1.2%.
 
     Changes in the unit value and volume of imports of goods by main supplier are shown in Table 2.
 
     Comparing January 2025 with January 2024, declines were recorded for the import volume from Korea (-25.3%) and the Mainland (-9.0%). On the other hand, the import volume from Singapore (2.9%), Taiwan (32.1%) and Malaysia (44.8%) increased.
 
     Over the same period of comparison, the import prices from all main suppliers increased: Korea (8.4%), Malaysia (5.3%), Taiwan (3.1%), Singapore (2.1%) and the Mainland (0.3%).
 
Further information
 
     Details of the above statistics are published in the January 2025 issue of “Hong Kong Merchandise Trade Index Numbers”.  Users can browse and download the report at the website of the C&SD (www.censtatd.gov.hk/en/EIndexbySubject.html?pcode=B1020006&scode=230).
 
     Enquiries on merchandise trade indices may be directed to the Trade Analysis Section of the C&SD (Tel: 2582 4918). read more

     The Census and Statistics Department (C&SD) released today (March 17) the preliminary statistics on Hong Kong’s Gross National Income (GNI) and related figures for the fourth quarter of 2024 and the whole year of 2024.
 
     Hong Kong’s GNI, which denotes the total income earned by Hong Kong residents from engaging in various economic activities, increased by 7.1% in the fourth quarter of 2024 over a year earlier to $898.6 billion at current market prices. The Gross Domestic Product (GDP), estimated at $836.5 billion at current market prices in the same quarter, recorded a 5.3% increase over a year earlier. The value of GNI was larger than GDP by $62.1 billion in the fourth quarter of 2024, which was equivalent to 7.4% of GDP in that quarter, mainly attributable to a net inflow of investment income.
 
     After netting out the effect of price changes over the same period, Hong Kong’s GNI increased by 5.2% in real terms in the fourth quarter of 2024 over a year earlier. The corresponding GDP in the same quarter increased by 2.4% in real terms.
 
     Hong Kong’s total inflow of primary income, which mainly comprises investment income, estimated at $496.8 billion in the fourth quarter of 2024 and equivalent to 59.4% of GDP in that quarter, recorded an increase of 8.1% over a year earlier. Meanwhile, total primary income outflow, estimated at $434.7 billion in the fourth quarter of 2024 and equivalent to 52.0% of GDP in that quarter, also increased by 4.9% over a year earlier.
 
     As for the major components of investment income inflow, direct investment income (DII) increased significantly by 10.8% over a year earlier, mainly due to the increase in earnings of some prominent local enterprises from their direct investment abroad. Portfolio investment income (PII) recorded a significant increase of 13.4% over a year earlier, mainly attributable to the increase in interest income received by resident investors from their holdings of non-resident debt securities.
 
     Regarding the major components of investment income outflow, DII increased by 6.1% over a year earlier, mainly due to the increase in earnings of some prominent multinational enterprises from their direct investment in Hong Kong. PII increased significantly by 11.6%, mainly attributable to the increase in interest payout to non-resident investors from their holdings of resident debt securities and the increase in dividend payout to non-resident investors from their holdings of resident equity securities.
 
     Analysed by country/territory, the mainland of China continued to be the largest source of Hong Kong’s total primary income inflow in the fourth quarter of 2024, accounting for 42.0%. This was followed by the British Virgin Islands (BVI), with a share of 17.6%. Regarding total primary income outflow, the mainland of China and the BVI remained the most important destinations in the fourth quarter of 2024, accounting for 27.5% and 21.9% respectively.
 
     For 2024 as a whole, Hong Kong’s GNI increased by 7.5% over a year earlier to $3,477.8 billion at current market prices. The difference of $300.8 billion from GDP for the same year (estimated at $3,177.0 billion) represented a net primary income inflow of the same amount and was equivalent to 9.5% of GDP in that year. The total primary income inflow was estimated at $2,204.0 billion, or 69.4% of GDP in 2024 while the corresponding outflow at $1,903.2 billion, or 59.9% of GDP in 2024. After netting out the effect of price changes, Hong Kong’s GNI increased by 5.0% in real terms in 2024 over 2023.
 
Further Information
 
     GDP and GNI are closely related indicators for measuring economic performance. GDP is a measure of the total value of production of all resident producing units of an economy. GNI denotes the total income earned by residents of an economy from engaging in various economic activities, irrespective of whether the economic activities are carried out within the economic territory of the economy or outside.
 
     Figures of GNI and primary income flows analysed by income component from the first quarter of 2023 to the fourth quarter of 2024 are presented in Table A, while selected major country/territory breakdowns of primary income inflow and outflow for the same quarters are presented in Tables B(1) and B(2) respectively.
 
     Statistics on GDP and GNI from 2023 onwards and primary income flows for 2024 are subject to revision when more data are incorporated.
 
     More detailed statistics are given in the report “Gross National Income and External Primary Income Flows, Fourth Quarter 2024”. Users can browse and download this publication at the website of the C&SD (www.censtatd.gov.hk/en/EIndexbySubject.html?pcode=B1040005&scode=250).
 
     For enquiries about GNI and related statistics, please contact the Balance of Payments Branch (2) of the C&SD (Tel: 3903 7054 or email: gni@censtatd.gov.hk). read more