Andy CHONG CHINA DAILY The second batch of consumption vouchers, worth more than HK $30 billion, is expected to revive Hong Kong's faltering economy amid global headwinds and the city's latest wave of COVID 19 infections, said Paul Chan Mo-poChan Mo-po, financial secretary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, in his blog on Sunday.
In the first half of this year, the GDP of HKSAR decreased by 2.7 percent compared to the same period last year. The SAR government will revise down its full-year forecast later this month, because earlier interest-rate hikes in the US and Europe have affected the city's exports, consumption and investment, and the full-year forecast will be revised later this month.
More than 6.3 million eligible Hong Kong residents were benefitted by the distribution of the first phase of the second round of e-vouchers on August 7, as part of the second round of e-vouchers. With rewards from online payment platforms, stores and shopping malls, additional spending by consumers will have a multiplier effect on stimulating the city's economy, which needs urgent support, Chan said.
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After two consecutive months of decline, Hong Kong s retail sales surged almost 12 percent year-on-year in April, when the first batch of consumption vouchers was issued, showing a positive impact of the vouchers and bringing the COVID 19 outbreak under control in the domestic market, the finance chief said.
Eligible residents received e-vouchers of either HK $2,000 or HK $3,000 in the first installment of HK $5,000, depending on whether they had collected the first batch of vouchers and the categories of recipients. Chan said a total of HK $13 billion has been injected into local retail and catering sectors.
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He said that the number of merchant and consumer accounts of Hong Kong's major digital payment platforms had increased by 130,000 and 7.1 million by the end of June. In the first half of the year, sales of e-commerce rose by 24 percent, but total retail sales fell by 2.6 percent. The popularity of online payments has been boosted by the e-vouchers. He said that the digital model provides more opportunities for retail stores and enterprises to explore potential new markets and business models.