On the 30th, the Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Paul Chan, stated that for Hong Kong, both the current account and the fiscal budget have surpluses, and the economic tone remains steady. Therefore, he revised Hong Kong's annual economic growth forecast from the original range of 1% to 3% down to 2% to 3%.
Chan mentioned that to assess an economy's resilience against risks, the most important aspect depends on its economic tone. Among these, the current account and fiscal status are two indicators of significant reference value. The latest report released by the rating agency Standard & Poor's also maintains Hong Kong's long-term credit rating at AAA with a stable outlook. Furthermore, it predicts that Hong Kong's economic growth will outperform the average level of high-income economies. Since the actual economic growth for the second quarter of Hong Kong announced in mid-August was 2.8%, and the economic growth performance in the first half of the year was better than expected at 2.6%, he revised the annual economic growth forecast from the original range of 1% to 3% down to 2% to 3%.
Chan reminded that as a small, highly external-oriented open economy, Hong Kong will inevitably continue to be affected by many external uncertainties in the second half of the year, including the unclear pace of interest rate hikes in the United States, the stagnant economies of Europe and Japan, and the downward pressure on the Chinese economy. Hong Kong will still face numerous challenges in the second half of the year, and the economic growth rate may be slower than in the first half, but there is no need to be overly worried or pessimistic.