Eased global trade tensions and steady growth in mainland China have given the government confidence that Hong Kong can meet its economic target for 2025, as official data showed expansion hit 3.1 per cent in the first quarter against a year ago.
But experts cautioned on Friday that uncertainties over the economic performance for the rest of the year remained, despite a 90-day pause in the US-China tariff war.
The 3.1 per cent growth for the first three months of the year in real terms confirmed by the Census and Statistics Department was higher than the full-year forecast of expansion of between 2 and 3 per cent.
Government economist Cecilia Lam Kwok-ying said authorities remained confident in hitting the annual target after taking into account data on local economic performance and trade figures for March and April, alongside the reduction in tariffs announced by Beijing and Washington earlier this week.
Lam said the easing of global trade tensions and reduced headwinds in the external environment could relieve some downward pressure on the global economic outlook.
“The sustained steady growth of the mainland economy amid more proactive fiscal policies and the moderately accommodative monetary policies should bode well for the performance of merchandise exports in Asia, including Hong Kong,” Lam said.
