Home ›› 23 Feb 2023 ›› World Biz
Hong Kong’s finance chief unveiled a HK$761 billion (US$97 billion) budget on Wednesday, plunging into the coffers to pay for the recession-hit city’s post-Covid recovery.
Hoping to kickstart the finance centre’s economy, Finance Secretary Paul Chan announced tax cuts and more consumer spending vouchers.
Hong Kong’s leaders are keen to resuscitate its fortunes after posting recessions in three of the past four years -- a tumultuous period that saw the economy battered by protests, virus controls and Beijing’s authoritarian crackdown.
While rival financial hubs reopened to the world long ago, Hong Kong only fully emerged from pandemic isolation earlier this month when it restored its border with mainland China, its main economic pipeline.
“Our economy is at the early recovery stage, and members of the public as well as a large number of enterprises are still weighed down by tremendous pressure and require support,” Chan told legislators while announcing his 2023/24 budget.
The latest blueprint for reversing the downturn allocates HK$5,000 (US$637) handouts for more than six million people, half last year’s amount as Chan is under pressure to rein in fiscal spending.
Other measures include salary tax breaks, welfare allowances and a “Happy Hong Kong” campaign aimed at making the city more enjoyable with food fairs.
The budget will push the city’s books into the red for a second consecutive year, but by less than some forecasters initially feared, with an estimated deficit of HK$54.4 billion.
Over the past three years, Hong Kong splashed out more than HK$600 billion on pandemic relief efforts.
