Hong Kong Trade Gap Widens In November

(RTTNews) - Hong Kong's trade deficit widened sharply in November as exports logged a notable deterioration on weak global demand and disruptions to cross-boundary land transportation, data revealed Thursday.

The visible trade deficit increased to HK$27.09 billion from HK$11.61 billion last year, the Census and Statistics Department said. This was also bigger than October's shortfall of HK$20.87 billion.

The visible trade gap of HK$27.1 percent was equivalent to 7.0 percent of the value of imports.

The annual decline in exports of goods more than doubled to 24.1 percent from 10.4 percent in October. Similarly, the fall in imports deepened to 20.3 percent from 11.9 percent.

In November, exports to Asia as a whole dropped 25.9 percent. Within this, shipments to the mainland China declined 29.7 percent, while that to India and Singapore advanced 7.4 percent and 5.4 percent, respectively.

Exports to other major destinations, in particular the UK fell 39.6 percent and that to the USA decreased 26.8 percent.

During the first eleven months of 2022, the value of exports dropped 6.4 percent from the last year and imports slid 5.4 percent. As a result, the visible trade deficit of HK$343.7 billion, equivalent to 7.6 percent of the value of imports of goods was registered during the period.

In the near-term, Hong Kong's export performance will continue to face huge challenges as monetary policy tightening in advanced economies weigh on demand, a government spokesman said.

Nonetheless, the recent relaxation of cross-boundary land transportation restrictions may offset some of the pressures, the spokesman noted.