Hong Kong Economy

Worlds Freest Economy is Hong Kong: Heritage Foundation once again hailed Hong Kong as the world’s freest economy. This is followed by Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, and Switzerland.

Hong Kong the world’s Freest Economy

This is amidst the report that the economic freedom for the world has experienced a decline in the past years; but, the president of the Foundation, Edwin Feulner, mentioned that this decline is mostly due to the government spending worldwide.

Nations have tried to justify their spending as a necessity to help re-start economic growth in their region; unfortunately, it has not worked yet towards the advantage of many of these countries.

In any case, the Foundation believes the market should be given the right to prove itself to the community and show what it could really do.

Justification for Making Hong Kong the World’s Freest Economy

Hong Kong has been ranked as the freest economy in the world for 18 consecutive years, and many are starting to wonder if it will manage to hold-on to this honor in the coming years, especially with Singapore doing its best to become the best investment country around the globe.

The apparent move to introduce minimum wage in Hong Kong has slightly given it a modest move in proximity to Singapore, but its Government is adamant in stating it maintains its laissez fare structure.

Some of the advocacies of the country include low tax rates, thriving financial markets, lack of trade tariffs, and small government, which are the elements that makes it a haven for many foreign investors. It has a gross domestic product per head of $32,000, yet a huge percentage of its citizens live in subsidized homes.

The convenience of setting up businesses in Hong Kong remains the same. It is extremely easy for anyone with investment to establish a company or corporation in its territory. However, the challenge is to break into particular types of businesses that have been mostly controlled by certain tycoons in the region. This is amidst the fact that it does not have any competition law implemented in the country.

Hong Kong and Its Future

With the move to implement minimum wage, organizations like Civic Exchange sees it as a positive way of alleviating poverty experienced by the low earning employees of the city. However, this is not seen as a positive light by the Heritage Foundation.

The economic and political plans of Hong Kong are yet to be decoded, but many will see a modest swing towards the direction of a more bureaucratic and politicized economy in the future. Will it fare well for their economic stability?

Only time can tell, but its leaders are optimistic this move will lead the country to a better tomorrow.