Hong Kong urged to spend cautiously, maintain tax incentives ahead of budget
Hong Kong's finance chief should 'cautiously manage' expenditures to ensure economic development rather than eliminate tax incentives that stimulate investment, a prominent business group has said.
The Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday also called for the creation of a digital services duty to create a level playing field for local businesses while also raising tax revenues, as part of a raft of proposals for the coming budget.
Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po on February 26 will deliver his budget speech for the 2025-26 financial year in which he is expected to announce cost-cutting measures to tackle the city's projected deficit of nearly HK$100 billion (US$12.8 billion).
The finance chief has previously said that while the city aimed to maintain its competitive advantage of a simple and low tax system, the government will focus on cost-cutting rather than seeking new sources of income.
Chamber chairwoman Agnes Chan Sui-kuen said that government policy had shifted to a period of 'fiscal consolidation' after years of using expansionary expenditures to boost the city's post-pandemic economic recovery.
But Chan added it was important that the government 'cautiously manage' expenditure controls to avoid impeding the city's economic development.
'We need to continue some of these incentives,' Chan said. 'Some of these incentives are still important to allow for economic development and to bring in more businesses.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RTHK
10 hours ago
- RTHK
Shot Colombian presidential contender operated on
Shot Colombian presidential contender operated on People light candles outside the Clinic Fundación Santa Fe, where Senator Miguel Uribe Turbay is receiving medical treatment. Photo: AFP A Colombian right-wing presidential candidate who was shot during a campaign event in Bogota has successfully undergone initial surgery, the city's mayor said on Sunday. 39-nine-year-old senator Miguel Uribe was speaking to supporters in the capital when a gunman shot him twice in the head and once in the knee before being detained. A security guard managed to detain the suspected attacker, a minor who is believed to be 15 years old. Uribe was airlifted to hospital in "critical condition" and underwent a "neurosurgical" and "peripheral vascular procedure," the Santa Fe Clinic in Bogota confirmed. He "overcame the first surgical procedure," Bogota mayor Carlos Fernando Galan told media, adding that he had entered "the critical hours" of recovery. His wife, in an audio recording shared with media, said "he came out well from the surgery." The motive for the attack is not yet publicly known. Colombia's defense minister Pedro Sanchez vowed to use law enforcement's full capabilities and offered a roughly US$725,000 reward for information about who was behind the shooting. In a video address to the nation posted on social media, President Gustavo Petro also promised investigations to find the perpetrators of the "day of pain". "What matters most today is that all Colombians focus with the energy of our hearts, with our will to live ... on ensuring that Dr Miguel Uribe stays alive." Uribe, a strong critic of Petro, is a member of the Democratic Center party, which announced last October his intention to run in the 2026 presidential election. Authorities said there was no specific threat made against the politician before the incident. Like many public figures in Colombia, Uribe had close personal protection. The country is home to several armed guerrilla groups, powerful cartels and has a long history of political violence. (AFP)
HKFP
17 hours ago
- HKFP
China vice premier to meet US delegation for trade talks, Beijing says
Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng will meet a US delegation for talks next week in Britain, Beijing announced Saturday amid a fragile truce in the trade dispute between the two powers. He will visit the United Kingdom from June 8 to 13 at the invitation of the British government, China's foreign ministry said in a statement. It said He and American representatives will co-chair the first meeting of the China-US economic and trade consultation mechanism. US President Donald Trump had already announced on Friday that a new round of trade talks with China would kick off in London beginning Monday, after he spoke by phone with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in a bid to end a bitter battle over tariffs. Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer would meet the Chinese team. The discussions will mark the second round of such negotiations between the world's two biggest economies since Trump launched his trade war shortly after returning to the White House in January. A first meeting, held in mid-May in Geneva, brought a pause to the US-China trade dispute. But Trump then accused Beijing of not respecting the terms of the de-escalation agreement. On Thursday the Republican president finally discussed the issues with Xi for the first time since the trade tensions soared, assuring that the conversation had been positive. Xi for his part told Trump the two should 'correct the course' of bilateral relations, according to remarks quoted by official Chinese media.
South China Morning Post
a day ago
- South China Morning Post
Angered by Trump's ‘unjustified' tariffs, Australia chases new trade deals
Australia will push to expand free-trade agreements with other countries to reduce its reliance on the United States, Trade Minister Don Farrell said on Sunday, slamming President Donald Trump's 'unjustified' tariffs. Advertisement Australia is a close US ally but has been slugged with a blanket 10 per cent tariff on goods exported to the US, rising to 50 per cent on steel and aluminium, as part of Trump 's sweeping global duties. 'I'm hopeful that those countries around the world who do believe in free and fair trade can reach an agreement to extend free-trade agreements across the globe, so that irrespective of what the Americans might choose to do, we have a greater diversity of trading partners,' Farrell told Sky News. He was speaking after talks last week in Paris with the World Trade Organization, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and other countries which he said had focused on preventing 'protectionism' and encouraging free and fair trade. 03:01 US appeals court allows Donald Trump's tariffs to stay in effect US appeals court allows Donald Trump's tariffs to stay in effect Trade between Australia and the US is worth an estimated A$100 billion (US$65 billion) a year, with Australia buying more from the US than it is selling, Farrell said.
