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Hong Kong exports suffer massive slump
2009/3/2
Hong Kong''s exports suffered their biggest year-on-year decline in value in half a century last month, plunging 21.8 percent to US$24.2 billion as international trade dried up amid the deepening global downturn, government data shows.
January''s imports fared no better, falling 27.1 percent to $28.3 billion. In December, exports decreased 11.4 percent while imports fell 16.2 percent, the South China Morning Post reported.
The last time Hong Kong''s trade performance recorded such steep deterioration was in March 1958, when exports shrank 22.4 percent.
In September 1967, imports dropped 36.6 per cent. World trade was affected by a sharp US recession in 1958 and slowing economic activity in 1966 and 1967.
Amid one of the worst global recessions in history, people are buying fewer toys for their children, replacing household appliances less often and cutting back where they can. The slump in demand has seen a rapid deterioration in exports from Hong Kong and the region.
Exports dropped significantly to Taiwan, the mainland, Thailand and South Korea, which all fell more than 30 percent. Exports to the US shrank seven percent.
Exports of electrical machinery, telecommunications equipment and office machinery all fell by more than 20 percent.
Economic growth across emerging Asia is expected to ease to 5.7 percent this year, according to projections by the Manila-based Asian Development Bank. This is down from an estimated 6.9 percent last year and 9 per cent in 2007.
The region''s sharp slowdown highlights the need to reduce its heavy reliance on exports to drive growth.
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2009/3/3