Rising Business Volumes Foreseen in Hong Kong Business Survey

by Mary Swire, Tax-News.com, Hong Kong

01 February 2005

According to the latest Quarterly Business Tendency Survey (QBTS) conducted by the Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department (C&SD), most sectors of the territory's economy expect business volumes to increase in the first quarter of 2005 compared with the final quarter of last year.

The survey, which gathers views on the short-term business outlook from the senior management of around 550 firms, found that respondents expect volumes to increase across a wide spectrum of Hong Kong's businesses, including wholesale and retail, import and export trade, restaurants and hotels, banks, financing and insurance, and real estate, business services and the telecommunications sector.

However, volume of business and output in the manufacturing, construction and transport services sector is expected to fall in the first quarter.

In the banks, financing and insurance sector, a significant proportion of respondents expect their volume of business to be higher in this current quarter compared to the last quarter, while significantly more respondents expect an increase in their employment, as compared to those expecting a decrease. Respondents expecting to increase the price of services rendered also outnumbered those expecting a decrease.

Meanwhile, in the real estate, business services and telecommunications sector, significantly more respondents expect an increase in their volume of business and employment in Q1 2005 than those expecting a decrease. However, respondents generally expect prices in this sector to remain broadly unchanged or to increase.

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