Access to THE WORLD FACTBOOK 1993 provided courtesy of The Libraries of the University of Missouri-St. Louis Match 109 DB Rec# - 55,856 Dataset-WOFACT Program :WORLD FACTBOOK Program key :CI WOFACT Update sched. :Annually ID number :CI WOFACT 108 Title :HONG KONG Data type :TEXT End year :1994 Date of record:02/16/1994 Keywords 3 : | HONG KONG Text : HONG KONG Affiliation: (dependent territory of the UK) GEOGRAPHY Location: East Asia, on the southeast coast of China bordering the South China Sea Map references: Asia, Southeast Asia, Standard Time Zones of the World Area: total area: 1,040 km2 land area: 990 km2 comparative area: slightly less than six times the size of Washington, DC Land boundaries: total 30 km, China 30 km Coastline: 733 km exclusive fishing zone: 3 nm territorial sea: 3 nm International disputes: none Climate: tropical monsoon; cool and humid in winter, hot and rainy from spring through summer, warm and sunny in fall Terrain: hilly to mountainous with steep slopes; lowlands in north Natural resources: outstanding deepwater harbor, feldspar Land use: arable land: 7% permanent crops: 1% meadows and pastures: 1% forest and woodland: 12% other: 79% Irrigated land: 20 km2 (1989) PEOPLE Population: 5,552,965 (July 1993 est.) Population growth rate: -0.06% (1993 est.) Birth rate: 12.27 births/1,000 population (1993 est.) Death rate: 5.68 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.) Net migration rate: -7.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.) Infant mortality rate: 5.9 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 79.99 years male: 76.55 years female: 83.64 years (1993 est.) Total fertility rate: 1.34 children born/woman (1993 est.) Nationality: noun: Chinese adjective: Chinese Ethnic divisions: Chinese 98%, other 2% Religions: eclectic mixture of local religions 90%, Christian 10% Languages: Chinese (Cantonese), English Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1971) total population: 77% male: 90% female: 64% Labor force: 2.8 million (1990) by occupation: manufacturing 28.5%, wholesale and retail trade, restaurants, and hotels 27.9%, services 17.7%, financing, insurance, and real estate 9.2%, transport and communications 4.5%, construction 2.5%, other 9.7% (1989) GOVERNMENT Names: conventional long form: none conventional short form: Hong Kong Digraph: HK Type: dependent territory of the UK scheduled to revert to China in 1997 Capital: Victoria Administrative divisions: none (dependent territory of the UK) Independence: none (dependent territory of the UK; the UK signed an agreement with China on 19 December 1984 to return Hong Kong to China on 1 July 1997; in the joint declaration, China promises to respect Hong Kong's existing social and economic systems and lifestyle) Constitution: unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice; new Basic Law approved in March 1990 in preparation for 1997 Legal system: based on English common law National holiday: Liberation Day, 29 August (1945) Political parties and leaders: United Democrats of Hong Kong, Martin LEE, chairman; Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong; Hong Kong Democratic Foundation Other political or pressure groups: Cooperative Resources Center, Allen LEE, chairman; Meeting Point, Anthony CHEUNG, chairman; Association of Democracy and People's Livelihood, Frederick FUNG Kin Kee, chairman; Liberal Democratic Federation, HEUNG Yee Kuk; Federation of Trade Unions (pro-China); Hong Kong and Kowloon Trade Union Council (pro-Taiwan); Confederation of Trade Unions (prodemocracy); Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce; Chinese General Chamber of Commerce (pro-China); Federation of Hong Kong Industries; Chinese Manufacturers' Association of Hong Kong; Hong Kong Professional Teachers' Union; Hong Kong Alliance in Support of the Patriotic Democratic Movement in China Suffrage: direct election 21 years of age; universal as a permanent resident living in the territory of Hong Kong for the past seven years indirect election limited to about 100,000 professionals of electoral college and functional constituencies Elections: Legislative Council: indirect elections last held 12 September 1991 and direct elections were held for the first time 15 September 1991 (next to be held in September 1995 when the number of directly-elected seats increases to 20); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (60 total; 21 indirectly elected by functional constituencies, 18 directly elected, 18 appointed by governor, 3 ex officio members); indirect elections - number of seats by functional constituency NA; direct elections - UDHK 12, Meeting Point 3, ADPL 1, other 2 Executive branch: British monarch, governor, chief secretary of the Executive Council Legislative branch: unicameral Legislative Council Judicial branch: Supreme Court Chief of State: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952) Head of Government: Governor Chris PATTEN (since NA July 1992); Chief Secretary Sir David Robert FORD (since NA February 1987) Member of: APEC, AsDB, CCC, ESCAP (associate), GATT, ICFTU, IMO (associate), INTERPOL (subbureau), IOC, ISO (correspondent), WCL, WMO Diplomatic representation in US: as a dependent territory of the UK, the interests of Hong Kong in the US are represented by the UK US diplomatic representation: chief of mission: Consul General Richard L. WILLIAMS embassy: Consulate General at 26 Garden Road, Hong Kong mailing address: Box 30, Hong Kong, or FPO AP 96522-0002 telephone: 852 239-011 Flag: blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant with the Hong Kong coat of arms on a white disk centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms contains a shield (bearing two junks below a crown) held by a lion (representing the UK) and a dragon (representing China) with another lion above the shield and a banner bearing the words HONG KONG below the shield ECONOMY Overview: Hong Kong has a bustling free market economy with few tariffs or nontariff barriers. Natural resources are limited, and food and raw materials must be imported. Manufacturing accounts for about 18% of GDP, employs 28% of the labor force, and exports about 90% of its output. Real GDP growth averaged a remarkable 8% in 1987-88, slowed to 3.0% in 1989-90, and picked up to 4.2% in 1991 and 5.9% in 1992. Unemployment, which has been declining since the mid-1980s, is now about 2%. A shortage of labor continues to put upward pressure on prices and the cost of living. Short-term prospects remain bright so long as major trading partners continue to be reasonably prosperous. National product: GDP - exchange rate conversion - $86 billion (1992 est.) National product real growth rate: 5.9% (1992) National product per capita: $14,600 (1992 est.) Inflation rate (consumer prices): 9.4% (1992) Unemployment rate: 2% (1992 est.) Budget: revenues $17.4 billion; expenditures $14.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY92) Exports: $118 billion, including reexports of $85.1 billion (f.o.b., 1992 est.) commodities: clothing, textiles, yarn and fabric, footwear, electrical appliances, watches and clocks, toys Imports: $120 billion (c.i.f., 1992 est.) commodities: foodstuffs, transport equipment, raw materials, semimanufactures, petroleum partners: China 37%, Japan 16%, Taiwan 9%, US 8% (1990) External debt: $9.5 billion (December 1990 est.) Industrial production: growth rate NA% Electricity: 9,566,000 kW capacity; 29,400 million kWh produced, 4,980 kWh per capita (1992) Industries: textiles, clothing, tourism, electronics, plastics, toys, watches, clocks Agriculture: minor role in the economy; rice, vegetables, dairy products; less than 20% self-sufficient; shortages of rice, wheat, water Illicit drugs: a hub for Southeast Asian heroin trade; transshipment and major financial and money-laundering center Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-87), $152 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $923 million Currency: 1 Hong Kong dollar (HK$) = 100 cents Exchange rates: Hong Kong dollars (HK$) per US$ - 7.800 (1992), 7.771 (1991), 7.790 (1990), 7.800 (1989), 7.810 (1988), 7.760 (1987); note - linked to the US dollar at the rate of about 7.8 HK$ per 1 US$ since 1985 Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March COMMUNICATIONS Railroads: 35 km 1.435-meter standard gauge, government owned Highways: 1,100 km total; 794 km paved, 306 km gravel, crushed stone, or earth Ports: Hong Kong Merchant marine: 176 ships (1,000 GRT or over), totaling 5,870,007 GRT/10,006,390 DWT; includes 1 passenger, 1 short-sea passenger, 20 cargo, 6 refrigerated cargo, 29 container, 15 oil tanker, 3 chemical tanker, 6 combination ore/oil, 5 liquefied gas, 88 bulk, 2 combination bulk; note - a flag of convenience registry; ships registered in Hong Kong fly the UK flag, and an estimated 500 Hong Kong-owned ships are registered elsewhere Airports: total: 2 useable: 2 with permanent-surface runways: 2 with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 1 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 0 Telecommunications: modern facilities provide excellent domestic and international services; 3,000,000 telephones; microwave transmission links and extensive optical fiber transmission network; broadcast stations - 6 AM, 6 FM, 4 TV; 1 British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) repeater station and 1 British Forces Broadcasting Service repeater station; 2,500,000 radio receivers; 1,312,000 TV sets (1,224,000 color TV sets); satellite earth stations - 1 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT and 2 Indian Ocean INTELSAT; coaxial cable to Guangzhou, China; links to 5 international submarine cables providing access to ASEAN member nations, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, Middle East, and Western Europe Defense forces Branches: Headquarters of British Forces, Royal Navy, Royal Air Force, Royal Hong Kong Auxiliary Air Force, Royal Hong Kong Police Force Manpower availability: males age 15-49 1,635,516; fit for military service 1,256,057; reach military age (18) annually 43,128 (1993 est.) Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $300 million, 0.5% of GDP (1989 est.); this represents one-fourth of the total cost of defending itself, the remainder being paid by the UK Note: defense is the responsibility of the UK -------------------------------------------------------------------------- This section of THE WORLD FACTBOOK 1993 produced by the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) was derived from the US Dept. of Commerce Economics and Statistics Division's NATIONAL TRADE DATA BANK CD-ROM, July, 1994, SuDoc No. C 1.88:994/7/v.1-2 / R. Muns, UM-St. Louis Libraries Local Filename: WF940106.TXT