|
 |
About China |
|
| Introduction |
|
| Background: |
Occupied
by the UK in 1841, Hong Kong was formally ceded
by China the following year; various adjacent lands
were added later in the 19th century. Pursuant to
an agreement signed by China and the UK on 19 December
1984, Hong Kong became the Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region (SAR) of China on 1 July 1997. In this agreement,
China has promised that, under its "one country,
two systems" formula, China's socialist economic
system will not be imposed on Hong Kong and that
Hong Kong will enjoy a high degree of autonomy in
all matters except foreign and defense affairs for
the next 50 years. |
|
| Geography |
| Location: |
Eastern
Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
22
15 N, 114 10 E |
| Map
references: |
Southeast
Asia |
| Area: |
total:
1,092 sq km
land: 1,042 sq km
water: 50 sq km |
| Area
- comparative: |
six
times the size of Washington, DC |
| Land
boundaries: |
total:
30 km
regional border: China 30 km |
| Coastline: |
733
km |
| Maritime
claims: |
territorial
sea: 3 nm |
| Climate: |
subtropical
monsoon; cool and humid in winter, hot and rainy from
spring through summer, warm and sunny in fall |
| Terrain: |
hilly
to mountainous with steep slopes; lowlands in north |
| Elevation
extremes: |
lowest
point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Tai Mo Shan 958 m |
| Natural
resources: |
outstanding
deepwater harbor, feldspar |
| Land
use: |
arable
land: 5.05%
permanent crops: 1.01%
other: 93.94% (2001) |
| Irrigated
land: |
20
sq km (1998 est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
occasional
typhoons |
| Environment
- current issues: |
air
and water pollution from rapid urbanization |
| Environment
- international agreements: |
party
to: Marine Dumping (associate member), Ship Pollution
(associate member) |
| Geography
- note: |
more
than 200 islands |
|
| People |
| Population: |
6,980,412
(July 2007 est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14
years: 13% (male 476,089/female 434,326)
15-64 years: 74% (male 2,515,518/female 2,652,660)
65 years and over: 12.9% (male 419,479/female
482,340) (2007 est.) |
| Median
age: |
total:
41.2 years
male: 40.9 years
female: 41.4 years (2007 est.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
0.561%
(2007 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
7.34
births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
6.45
deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
4.72
migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at
birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.096 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.948 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female
total population: 0.956 male(s)/female (2007
est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
total:
2.94 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 3.12 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 2.74 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total
population: 81.68 years
male: 78.99 years
female: 84.6 years (2007 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
0.98
children born/woman (2007 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
0.1%
(2003 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
2,600
(2003 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- deaths: |
less
than 200 (2003 est.) |
| Nationality: |
noun:
Chinese/Hong Konger
adjective: Chinese/Hong Kong |
| Ethnic
groups: |
Chinese
94.9%, Filipino 2.1%, other 3% (2001 census) |
| Religions: |
eclectic
mixture of local religions 90%, Christian 10% |
| Languages: |
Chinese
(Cantonese) 89.2% (official), other Chinese dialects
6.4%, English 3.2% (official), other 1.2% (2001 census) |
| Literacy: |
definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 93.5%
male: 96.9%
female: 89.6% (2002) |
|
| Government
|
| Country
name: |
conventional
long form: Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
conventional short form: Hong Kong
local long form: Xianggang Tebie Xingzhengqu
local short form: Xianggang
abbreviation: HK |
| Dependency
status: |
special
administrative region of China |
| Government
type: |
limited
democracy |
| Administrative
divisions: |
none
(special administrative region of China) |
| Independence: |
none
(special administrative region of China) |
| National
holiday: |
National
Day (Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic
of China), 1 October (1949); note - 1 July 1997 is celebrated
as Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Establishment
Day |
| Constitution: |
Basic
Law, approved in March 1990 by China's National People's
Congress, is Hong Kong's "mini-constitution" |
| Legal
system: |
based
on English common law |
| Suffrage: |
direct
election 18 years of age; universal for permanent residents
living in the territory of Hong Kong for the past seven
years; indirect election limited to about 200,000 members
of functional constituencies and an 800-member election
committee drawn from broad regional groupings, municipal
organizations, and central government bodies |
| Executive
branch: |
chief
of state: President of China HU Jintao (since 15
March 2003)
head of government: Chief Executive Donald TSANG
(since 24 June 2005)
cabinet: Executive Council consists of 14 official
members and 15 non-official members
elections: chief executive elected for five-year
term by 800-member electoral committee; last held on
25 March 2007 (next to be held in 2012)
election results: Donald TSANG elected chief
executive receiving 84.1% of the vote; Alan LEONG received
15.9% |
| Legislative
branch: |
unicameral
Legislative Council or LEGCO (60 seats; in 2004 30 seats
indirectly elected by functional constituencies, 30
elected by popular vote; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 12 September 2004 (next
to be held in September 2008)
election results: percent of vote by party -
pro-democracy 63%, pro-Beijing 37%; seats by party -
(pro-Beijing 34) DAB 12, Liberal Party 10, FTU 1, independents
11; (pro-democracy 25) Democratic Party 9, CTU 2, ADPL
1, Frontier Party 1, NWSC 1, independents 11; non-voting
LEGCO president 1 |
| Judicial
branch: |
Court
of Final Appeal in the Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region |
| Political
parties and leaders: |
Association
for Democracy and People's Livelihood or ADPL [Frederick
FUNG Kin-kee]; Citizens Party [Alex CHAN Kai-chung];
Civic Party [KUAN Hsin-chi]; Democratic Alliance for
the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong or DAB [MA
Lik]; Democratic Party [Albert HO]; Frontier Party [Emily
LAU Wai-hing]; Liberal Party [James TIEN Pei-chun]
note: political blocs include: pro-democracy
- ADPL, Democratic Party, Frontier Party; pro-Beijing
- DAB, Liberal Party |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
Chinese
General Chamber of Commerce (pro-China); Chinese Manufacturers'
Association of Hong Kong; Confederation of Trade Unions
or CTU (pro-democracy) [LAU Chin-shek, president; LEE
Cheuk-yan, general secretary]; Federation of Hong Kong
Industries; Federation of Trade Unions or FTU (pro-China)
[CHENG Yiu-tong, executive councilor]; Hong Kong Alliance
in Support of the Patriotic Democratic Movement in China
[Szeto WAH, chairman]; Hong Kong and Kowloon Trade Union
Council (pro-Taiwan); Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce;
Hong Kong Professional Teachers' Union [CHEUNG Man-kwong,
president]; Neighborhood and Workers' Service Center
or NWSC (pro-democracy); The Alliance [Bernard CHAN,
exco member] |
| International
organization participation: |
APEC,
AsDB, BIS, ICC, IHO, IMF, IMO (associate), IOC, ISO
(correspondent), ITUC, UNWTO (associate), UPU, WCL,
WCO, WMO, WTO |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
none
(special administrative region of China) |
| Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
chief
of mission: Consul General James B. CUNNINGHAM
consulate(s) general: 26 Garden Road, Hong Kong
mailing address: PSC 461, Box 1, FPO AP 96521-0006
telephone: [852] 2523-9011
FAX: [852] 2845-1598 |
| Flag
description: |
red
with a stylized, white, five-petal bauhinia flower in
the center |
|
| Economy |
| Economy
- overview: |
Hong
Kong has a free market economy highly dependent on international
trade. The territory has become more closely linked
to mainland China over the past few years. Even before
Hong Kong reverted to Chinese administration on 1 July
1997, it had extensive trade and investment ties with
China. Hong Kong's service industry over the past decade
has grown rapidly as its manufacturing industry has
moved to the mainland. Hong Kong also has stepped up
its efforts to gain approval to offer more mainland
financial services in a bid to remain competitive with
China's growing financial centers. Hong Kong's natural
resources are limited, and food and raw materials must
be imported. Gross imports and exports (including reexports
to and from third countries) each exceed GDP in dollar
value. Per capita GDP exceeds that of the four big economies
of Western Europe. GDP growth averaged a strong 5% from
1989 to 2006, but Hong Kong suffered two recessions
in the past eight years because of the Asian financial
crisis in 1997-98 and the global downturn in 2001-02.
Although the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)
outbreak in 2003 also battered Hong Kong's economy,
a solid rise in exports, a boom in tourism from the
mainland because of China's easing of travel restrictions,
and a return of consumer confidence resulted in the
resumption of strong growth from late 2003 through 2006.
Moreover, several large initial public offerings of
Chinese companies on the Hong Kong stock exchange since
late 2005 have helped to boost Hong Kong's status as
a financial hub and have contributed to the improved
performance of the market in late 2006. |
| GDP
(purchasing power parity): |
$259.1
billion (2006 est.) |
| GDP
(official exchange rate): |
$188.8
billion (2006 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
6.9%
(2006 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture:
0.1%
industry: 8.6%
services: 91.3% (2006 est.) |
| Labor
force: |
3.583
million (2006 est.) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
manufacturing
7.5%, construction 2.9%, wholesale and retail trade,
restaurants, and hotels 43.9%, financing, insurance,
and real estate 19.6%, transport and communications
7.1%, community and social services 18.8%
note: above data exclude public sector (2005
est.) |
| Unemployment
rate: |
4.9%
(2006 est.) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
NA% |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest
10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Distribution
of family income - Gini index: |
52.3
(2001) |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
2%
(2006 est.) |
| Investment
(gross fixed): |
21.8%
of GDP (2006 est.) |
| Budget: |
revenues:
$35.18 billion
expenditures: $32.18 billion (2006 est.) |
| Public
debt: |
13.3%
of GDP (2006 est.) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
fresh
vegetables; poultry, pork; fish |
| Industries: |
textiles,
clothing, tourism, banking, shipping, electronics, plastics,
toys, watches, clocks |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
4%
(2006 est.) |
| Electricity
- production: |
36.14
billion kWh (2005) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
37.74
billion kWh (2005) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
4.498
billion kWh (2005) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
11
billion kWh (2005) |
| Oil
- production: |
0 bbl/day
(2005 est.) |
| Oil
- consumption: |
285,000
bbl/day (2005 est.) |
| Oil
- exports: |
26,090
bbl/day (2004) |
| Oil
- imports: |
344,200
bbl/day (2004) |
| Oil
- proved reserves: |
0 bbl
(1 January 2006) |
| Current
account balance: |
$20.59
billion (2006 est.) |
| Exports: |
$317.6
billion f.o.b., including reexports (2006 est.) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
electrical
machinery and appliances, textiles, apparel, footwear,
watches and clocks, toys, plastics, precious stones,
printed material |
| Exports
- partners: |
China
47%, US 15.1%, Japan 4.9% (2006) |
| Imports: |
$331.7
billion (2006 est.) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
raw
materials and semi-manufactures, consumer goods, capital
goods, foodstuffs, fuel (most is re-exported) |
| Imports
- partners: |
China
45.9%, Japan 10.3%, Taiwan 7.5%, Singapore 6.3%, US
4.8%, South Korea 4.6% (2006) |
| Reserves
of foreign exchange and gold: |
$133.2
billion (2006 est.) |
| Debt
- external: |
$72.79
billion (2006 est.) |
| Currency
(code): |
Hong
Kong dollar (HKD) |
| Exchange
rates: |
Hong
Kong dollars per US dollar - 7.7678 (2006), 7.7773 (2005),
7.788 (2004), 7.7868 (2003), 7.7989 (2002) |
| Fiscal
year: |
1 April
- 31 March |
|
| Transportation |
| Airports: |
2 (2007) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total: 2
over 3,047 m:
1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
| Heliports: |
5 (2007) |
| Roadways: |
total: 1,955 km
paved:
1,955 km (2005) |
| Merchant
marine: |
total: 1,009 ships
(1000 GRT or over) 34,556,075 GRT/57,423,309 DWT
by type:
barge carrier 2, bulk carrier 499, cargo 135, chemical
tanker 51, combination ore/oil 3, container 173, liquefied
gas 24, passenger 6, passenger/cargo 5, petroleum tanker
91, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 8, vehicle
carrier 8
foreign-owned: 617 (Belgium 4, Canada
39, China 309, Denmark 12, France 1, Germany 10, Greece
30, Indonesia 7, Japan 78, South Korea 6, Lebanon 1, Norway
30, Pakistan 1, Philippines 10, Portugal 1, Singapore
11, Syria 1, Taiwan 11, UAE 1, UK 32, US 22)
registered
in other countries: 275 (Bahamas 3, Belize 5, Bermuda
4, Cambodia 11, China 6, Cyprus 2, Honduras 1, India 1,
Liberia 21, Malaysia 14, Malta 1, Marshall Islands 4,
Mongolia 1, Norway 5, Panama 137, Philippines 2, Seychelles
1, Singapore 37, St Vincent and The Grenadines 7, Tuvalu
10, UK 2, unknown 7) (2007) |
| Ports
and terminals: |
Hong Kong |
|
| Military |
| Military
branches: |
no
regular indigenous military forces; Hong Kong garrison
of China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) includes elements
of Ground Forces, Navy, and Air Force; these forces
are under the direct leadership of the Central Military
Commission in Beijing and under administrative control
of the adjacent Guangzhou Military Region |
| Military
service age and obligation: |
18
years of age (2004) |
| Manpower
available for military service: |
males
age 18-49: 1,743,972
females age 18-49: 1,904,967 (2005 est.) |
| Manpower
fit for military service: |
males
age 18-49: 1,403,088
females age 18-49: 1,527,278 (2005 est.) |
| Manpower
reaching military service age annually: |
males
age 18-49: 40,343
females age 18-49: 38,234 (2005 est.) |
| Military
expenditures - percent of GDP: |
NA |
| Military
- note: |
defense
is the responsibility of China |
|
| Transnational
Issues |
| Disputes
- international: |
none |
| Illicit
drugs: |
despite
strenuous law enforcement efforts, faces difficult challenges
in controlling transit of heroin and methamphetamine
to regional and world markets; modern banking system
provides conduit for money laundering; rising indigenous
use of synthetic drugs, especially among young people |
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