Editorial | Hong Kong has to take its Guangdong chance

Name: High hopes for China’s Greater Bay Area, but integrating 11 cities will pose challenges
Uploaded: 2022-02-03T00:00:32.000Z
Duration: 6 min 19 s
Description: High hopes for China’s Greater Bay Area, but integrating 11 cities will pose challenges

As the economy of neighbouring province soars, Hong Kong should not only help bring about ‘common prosperity’, but also show that it still has an eye for risk-taking, enterprise and adaptability

Reading Time:2 minutes

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City Skyline in the Evening of Nanshan, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China. Photo: Shutterstock

SCMP Editorial

Published: 8:00am, 3 Feb 2022Updated: 9:57am, 3 Feb 2022

Guangdong’s economy grew to 5.3 times that of Hong Kong’s last year, from 4.6 times as large in 2020. Although, as a financial centre, Hong Kong helped generate the momentum of growth, it is inconceivable that the city could ever catch up with that blistering pace, let alone reverse the trend.

It is far better to contemplate the opportunities for Hong Kong to prosper from its integration with the province in the Greater Bay Area economic and business hub.

To give some idea of the growth potential for the city as Guangdong’s fintech centre, the manufacturing powerhouse’s economy is likely to have surpassed that of South Korea’s for the first time last year.

If it were a country, it would rank in the top 10 globally. It is far from reaching its potential for growth. Even levelling uneven wealth and economic output will be positive for growth overall.

06:19

High hopes for China’s Greater Bay Area, but integrating 11 cities will pose challenges

Guangdong’s gross domestic product grew by 8 per cent last year to 12.4 trillion yuan (US$1.95 trillion) based on the official average annual exchange rate, according to government figures. Hong Kong’s 2021 GDP is expected to be about US$360 billion, according to the latest forecast by the University of Hong Kong.