Hong Kong is going down a pit hole. The financial hub is losing its status as the wave of immigration is speeding up. Its technical talent is also leaving. Stocks have fallen harshly. Some even lost almost all of their market value in one single day. And compared to other financial hubs in the area like Singapore, Hong Kong is lagging far behind.
Lagging economy
Hong Kong’s lagging economy could be clearly seen in its stock market. Hong Kong stock market very often sees doomsday scenes. Many stocks could suddenly plummet by 80% to 90% in one day. For example, the recent share price of Huijing Holdings fell by 88% in one day. If it falls, it will not rise again.
Xie Jinhe , chairman of Caixin Media, bluntly said that the flow of people and money determines the fate of Hong Kong.
Japanese brand Sogo Department Store at the Causeway Bay Metro Station recently announced a loss of HK$475 million or $60 million in the first half of the year. After the loss of HK$1.3 billion or $165 million in the whole year of last year, it continued to lose money this year. As a result its stock price also fell from a maximum of HK$28.05 to mere HK$2.59, or from $3.57 to 33 cents. SOGO used to be the most prosperous mall in Causeway Bay, and it is now gradually failing.
Xie analyzed that when Hong Kong returned to the mainland in 1997, its gross domestic product ( GDP ) was $175 billion, while Singapore was only $106 billion. Now the two countries’ GDP is roughly the same at $340 billion, but Singapore’s GDP per capita is $59,700, far exceeding that of Hong Kong at $49,600.
Wave of immigration
With a sagging economy and a more authoritarian rule from Beijing over the financial hub, Hong Kong is experiencing a wave of immigration.
Wang Dongsheng is chairman of the Hong Kong Chamber of Commerce. He also said that the immigration wave has caused the loss of technical talent from Hong Kong.
Many people who emigrate from Hong Kong are middle class and the rich. And the rate is quite high.
According to a previous report by immigration consultancy Henley & Partners, at least 3,000 millionaires will leave Hong Kong this year. Most will go to Singapore, Australia, and the United Arab Emirates.
Xie Jinhe, chairman of Caixin Media, said that the British government announced that 8,500 Hong Kong people applied for primary and secondary school admissions last year.
