Hong Kong GDP revised slightly up to 7.9%

The government maintained has its 3.5-5.5% forecast for the full year of 2021.

Hong Kong’s real gross domestic product (GDP) grew 7.9% year-on-year in the first quarter of the year, ending six quarters of contraction.

This was attributed to the global economic recovery, led by Mainland China as well as the US, and Hong Kong’s strong external trade as it saw total exports of goods to rise 30.2% YoY in real terms.

Read also: Economy rebounds 7.8% after six quarters of contraction

The recovery, however, was uneven whilst overall economic activity is still below pre-recession level.

“Domestically, if the local epidemic remains well contained, business and consumer confidence, which has improved recently, should see some further improvement down the road,” Government economist Andrew Au said.

“The Government’s relief measures, including the consumption voucher scheme, will help reinforce this development.”

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Business sentiment amongst small and medium enterprises improved to a two-year high in April; whilst still remaining cautious.

Moreover, the unemployment situation in the City also recovered in the March after the jobless rate dropped to 6.8% from peaking 7.2% in February.

“Many consumer-facing activities are labour intensive and are still affected by the threat of the epidemic. So it is essential for all of us to work together to keep the epidemic under control and actively participate in the vaccination programme,” Au also said.

“This will not only protect ourselves but also help create the necessary conditions for a full-fledged economic recovery.”