Strong tourism in Hong Kong 0 comments

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The Hong Kong economy has recovered strongly since being stricken by SARS in mid-2003. A major factor has been its strong linkage with its hinterland of China, who have given Hong Kong a strong boost with its CEPA (Closer Economic Partnership Agreement), effective since 2004, which has facilitated easy tariff-free movement of goods, services and people across the China-HK SAR border. One of the primary beneficiaries has been tourism in Hong Kong.

According to statistics, China tourists now form more than half of Hong Kong's record 22 million tourist arrivals in 2004. The Mainland Individual Tourist Visit Arrangement that was introduced by the Chinese government, allowing mainlanders from several cities (the main coastal ones) to travel to Hong Kong as individuals rather than in tour groups as previously allowed, has contributed strongly to this trend. It is not hard to see why Hong Kong is seen as the favourite destination of Mainland Chinese; it is cheap to travel there, there are little restrictions, and it is a cosmopolitan global city. The biggest beneficiaries of this tourism trend would arguably be hotels in Hong Kong, which have enjoyed 80-100% occupancy rates over the last two years. Retail and property have also enjoyed booms, together with the stock market.

Clearly the steady growth of the global economy has also contributed to the recovery of Hong Kong tourism, but more than anything the strong tourist influx from China and the continuing growth of the Chinese economy is likely to buttress the tourism growth in Hong Kong for the next few years. The next stimulus to Hong Kong tourism will be the Hong Kong Disneyland opening in September 2005; this is expected to bring in another surge in the tourist arrivals.

References:
(1) Hong Kong Tourism Commission: Tourism Performance in 2004