Hong Kong Industry Sectors

Hong Kong has become a highly industrialized manufacturing centre, following the Second World War. In the 1980s, the territory underwent swift transition to become a service-based economy. Hong Kong is a free market economy that depends on international trade and finance to a great extent. The economy is primarily dominated by the service sector that contributed 92.3% to the GDP in 2009.[br]

Hong Kong has become a highly industrialized manufacturing centre, following the Second World War. In the 1980s, the territory underwent swift transition to become a service-based economy. Hong Kong is a free market economy that depends on international trade and finance to a great extent. The economy is primarily dominated by the service sector that contributed 92.3% to the GDP in 2009.[br]

Hong Kong Industry Sectors: Major Industries

The major Hong Kong industries are as follows:

 

Textile and Garment: This is the largest manufacturing activity in Hong Kong, despite several firms having relocated to mainland China. After China and the EU, Hong Kong is the third largest exporter of garments in the world. In 2008, it exported textile and clothing products worth US$40 billion, which was equivalent to 11% of the territory’s total exports. Most of them include re-exports of products imported from China and other Asian countries. Over the years, the domestic textile and garment sector has seen some downward movement due to high manufacturing costs. Land and labor costs, specifically, are much higher than that of many other Asian countries.

 

Banking and Financial Services: Being one of largest the international financial hubs, Hong Kong offers a multitude of financial services. In Q307, there was a 100.1% rise in the business receipts of the finance industry, of which 47.7% were from banking. Hong Kong houses branches of 71 of the 100 largest banks of the world. Measured by external transactions, Hong Kong is the 9th largest international banking centre in the world. In 2007, banking assets of the territory totaled over HK$10 trillion. The securities market of Hong Kong is the 10th largest in the world. In 2008, total capital raised stood as HK$182.2 billion (including post-listing funds). The total fund-management business of the territory gathered HK$9.6 billion as per SFC’s 2007 Fund Management Survey.[br]

 

Tourism: With 3.4% contribution to Hong Kong’s GDP, the tourism industry has been a pillar of the nation’s economy for a long time. The number of tourists from the mainland increased to 16.9 million in 2008, from 4.5 million in 2001. This was primarily due to a reduction in the travel restrictions by China. In 2003, the implementation of the Individual Visit Scheme (IVS) led to a tremendous flow of mainland tourists. In 2009, however, the number fell by 3.4% due to the impact of H1N1 and the economic recession.