Businesses Assured Of Support, But No New Plans

The Chief Executive in her policy address assured the business community that they have the continued support of the government during difficult economic times, but offered no new plans for the sector.

Lam acknowledged that the government is now considering that Hong Kong has slipped into a technical recession – when two consecutive quarters show a fall in GDP. The second quarter had already seen one, which was blamed on China-US trade tensions.

"Violent acts in recent months have aggravated the situation, posing an unprecedented challenge to our economy," she said.

She said the government is "very concerned about the pressure borne by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)".

There were no new packages, but Lam instead referred to measures announced earlier and trade agreements designed to boost business.

She also said the government "capitalises on the opportunities brought" by the Belt and Road Initiative and the Greater Bay Area plans to open up more markets for Hong Kong's enterprises and professional services

"The violent incidents in the past few months have seriously damaged Hong Kong's international image and undermined its attractiveness to overseas investors," she said.

"Once peace is restored, we will, in collaboration with the relevant organisations, chambers of commerce and professional bodies, devote more efforts and resources to carrying out promotional work and other effective measures to rebuild confidence in Hong Kong."