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Background:
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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.
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Location:
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Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China
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Geographic coordinates:
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22 15 N, 114 10 E
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Area:
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total: 1,092 sq km (water: 50 sq km, land: 1,042 sq km)
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Boundaries:
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total: 30 km (border countries: China 30 km)
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Coastline:
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733 km
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Climate:
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tropical monsoon; cool and humid in winter, hot and rainy from spring through summer, warm and sunny in fall
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Terrain:
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hilly to mountainous with steep slopes; lowlands in north
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Tai Mo Shan 958 m
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Natural resources:
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outstanding deepwater harbour, feldspar
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Land use:
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arable land: 5.05%
other: 93.94%
permanent crops: 1.01%
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Irrigated land:
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20 sq km (1998 est.)
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Natural hazards:
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occasional typhoons
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Environment - current issues:
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air and water pollution from rapid urbanization
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Environment - international agreements:
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party to: Marine Dumping (associate member), Ship Pollution (associate member)
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note:
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more than 200 islands
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Population:
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7,394,170 (July 2003 est.)
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 17.3% (male 680,973; female 599,309)
15-64 years: 71.7% (male 2,619,929; female 2,679,430)
65 years and over: 11% (male 375,058; female 439,471) (2003 est.)
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Population growth rate:
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1.22% (2003 est.)
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Nationality:
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Chinese
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Ethnic groups:
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Chinese 95%, other 5%
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Religions:
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eclectic mixture of local religions 90%, Christian 10%
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Languages:
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Chinese (Cantonese), English; both are official
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Country name:
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conventional long form: Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
conventional short form: Hong Kong
abbreviation: HK
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Dependency status:
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special administrative region of China
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Government type:
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limited democracy
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National holiday:
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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
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Constitution:
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Basic Law approved in March 1990 by China's National People's Congress is Hong Kong's "mini-constitution"
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Legal system:
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based on English common law
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Suffrage:
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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 100,000 members of functional constituencies and an 800-member election committee drawn from broad regional groupings, municipal organizations, and central government bodies
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Executive branch:
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chief of state: President of China HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003)
head of government: Chief Executive TUNG Chee-hwa (since 1 July 1997)
TUNG Chee-Hwa was elected to a second term in March 2002 by an 800-member election committee dominated by pro-Beijing forces; the next election is scheduled to be held in 2007
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Judicial branch:
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Court of Final Appeal in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
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International organization participation:
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APEC, AsDB, BIS, ESCAP (associate), ICC, ICFTU, IHO, IMO (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, ISO (correspondent), WCL, WCO, WMO, WToO (associate), WTrO
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Flag description:
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red with a stylized, white, five-petal bauhinia flower in the center:
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Economy - overview:
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Hong Kong has a free market economy highly dependent on international trade. Natural resources are limited, and food and raw materials must be imported. Imports and exports, including
re-exports, each exceed GDP in dollar value. Even before Hong Kong reverted to Chinese administration on 1 July 1997 it had extensive trade and investment ties with China. Hong Kong has been further integrating its economy with China because China's growing openness to the world economy has increased competitive pressure on Hong Kong's service industries, and Hong Kong's re-export business from China is a major driver of growth. Per capita GDP compares with the level in the four big economies of Western Europe. GDP growth averaged a strong 5% in 1989-1997, but Hong Kong suffered two recessions in the past 6 years because of the Asian financial crisis in 1998 and the global downturn of 2001-2002. The Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak also battered Hong Kong's economy but the resumption of strong growth began in 2003.
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GDP:
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purchasing power parity - $198.5 billion (2002 est.)
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GDP - real growth rate:
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2.3% (2002 est.)
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power parity - $27,200 (2002 est.)
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 0.1%
industry: 13.4%
services: 86.5% (2001 est.)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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3% (2002 est.)
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Labor force:
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3.52 million (2001 est.)
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Labor force - by occupation:
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wholesale and retail trade, restaurants, and hotels 31%, financing, insurance, and real estate 13%, community and social services 12%, manufacturing 6%, transport and communications 6%, construction 5%, other 25% (2002 est.)
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Unemployment rate:
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7.5% (2002 est.)
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Budget:
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revenues: $22.8 billion
expenditures: $30.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY02/03)
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Industries:
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textiles, clothing, tourism, banking, shipping, electronics, plastics, toys, watches, clocks
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Agriculture - products:
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fresh vegetables; poultry, fish, pork
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Exports:
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$200.3 billion f.o.b., including re-exports (2002 est.)
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Exports - commodities:
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electrical machinery and appliances, textiles, apparel, footwear, watches and clocks, toys, plastics, precious stones
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Exports - partners:
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China 34%, US 19.5%, UK 5.5%, Japan 4.8% (2002)
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Imports:
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$208.1 billion (2002 est.)
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Imports - commodities:
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foodstuffs, transport equipment, raw materials,
semi-manufactures, petroleum, plastics, machinery, electrical equipment; a large share is
re-exported
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Imports - partners:
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China 37.5%, Japan 12.2%, Taiwan 7.3%, US 6.2%, Singapore 5.3%, South Korea 5% (2002)
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Debt - external:
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$49.5 billion (2002 est.)
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Currency:
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Hong Kong dollar (HKD)
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Exchange rates:
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Hong Kong dollars per US dollar - 7.8 (2002), 7.8 (2001), 7.79 (2000), 7.76 (1999), 7.75 (1998)
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Fiscal year:
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1 April - 31 March
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Telephones - main lines in use:
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3.839 million
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
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3.7 million
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Telephone system:
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general assessment: modern facilities provide excellent domestic and international services
domestic: microwave radio relay links and extensive fiber-optic network
international: satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Pacific Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean); coaxial cable to Guangzhou, China; access to 5 international submarine cables providing connections to ASEAN member nations, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, Middle East, and Western Europe
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Internet Service Providers
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17
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Internet users:
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4.35 million
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Railways:
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total: 34 km
standard gauge: 34 km 1.435-m gauge (electrified and double-tracked)
note: connects to China railway system at Hong Kong-China border (2001)
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Highways:
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total: 1,831 km
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Ports:
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Hong Kong
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Merchant marine:
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total: 549 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 16,176,728 GRT/27,119,764 DWT
ships by type: barge carrier 1, bulk 315, cargo 66, chemical tanker 15, combination bulk 2, container 86, liquefied gas 16, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, petroleum tanker 40, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 2, short-sea passenger 1, vehicle carrier 2, includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Belgium 5, Belize 1, British Virgin Islands 1, China 115, Denmark 2, Germany 19, Greece 2, India 8, Japan 8, Liberia 1, Malaysia 7, Norway 1, Panama 2, Philippines 5, Singapore 7, South Korea 2, Taiwan 1, UK 27, Virgin Islands (UK) 1
note: (2002 est.)
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Airports - with paved runways:
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total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1523 m: 1
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Heliports:
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2 (2002)
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Military branches:
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no regular indigenous military forces; Hong Kong garrison of China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) including elements of the PLA Ground Forces, PLA Navy, and PLA 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
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