Hong Kong

Introduction

Background

Occupied by the UK in 1841, Hong Kong was formally ceded by China the following year; various adjacent lands were added later in the 19th century. Pursuant to an agreement signed by China and the UK on 19 December 1984, Hong Kong became the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China on 1 July 1997. In this agreement, China promised that, under its "one country, two systems" formula, China's socialist economic system would not be imposed on Hong Kong and that Hong Kong would enjoy a "high degree of autonomy" in all matters except foreign and defense affairs for the subsequent 50 years.

Geography

Location

Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China

Geographic coordinates

22 15 N, 114 10 E

Map references

Southeast Asia

Area

total: 1,108 sq km
land: 1,073 sq km
water: 35 sq km
country comparison to the world: 184

Area - comparative

six times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries

total: 33 km
regional borders (1): China 33 km

Coastline

733 km

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12nm

Climate

subtropical monsoon; cool and humid in winter, hot and rainy from spring through summer, warm and sunny in fall

Terrain

hilly to mountainous with steep slopes; lowlands in north

Elevation

lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Tai Mo Shan 958 m

Natural resources

outstanding deepwater harbor, feldspar

Land use

agricultural land: 5% (2011 est.)
arable land: 3.2% (2011 est.)/permanent crops: 0.9% (2011 est.)/permanent pasture: 0.9% (2011 est.)
forest: 0% (2011 est.)
other: 95% (2011 est.)

Irrigated land

10 sq km (2012)

Population distribution

population fairly evenly distributed

Natural hazards

occasional typhoons

Environment - current issues

air and water pollution from rapid urbanization; urban waste pollution; industrial pollution

Environment - international agreements

party to: Marine Dumping (associate member), Ship Pollution (associate member)

Geography - note

consists of a mainland area (the New Territories) and more than 200 islands

People and Society

Population

7,213,338 (July 2018 est.)
country comparison to the world: 102

Nationality

noun: Chinese/Hong Konger
adjective: Chinese/Hong Kong

Ethnic groups

Chinese 92%, Filipino 2.5%, Indonesian 2.1%, other 3.4% (2016 est.)

Languages

Cantonese (official) 88.9%, English (official) 4.3%, Mandarin (official) 1.9%, other Chinese dialects 3.1%, other 1.9% (2016 est.)

Religions

Buddhist or Taoist 27.9%, Protestant 6.7%, Roman Catholic 5.3%, Muslim 4.2%, Hindu 1.4%, Sikh 0.2%, other or none 54.3% (2016 est.)
note: many people practice Confucianism, regardless of their religion or not having a religious affiliation

Age structure

0-14 years: 12.38%(male 471,983 /female 420,977)
15-24 years: 9.89%(male 372,991 /female 340,221)
25-54 years: 43.96%(male 1,354,676 /female 1,816,303)
55-64 years: 16.64%(male 571,329 /female 628,774)
65 years and over: 17.14%(male 580,248 /female 655,836) (2018 est.)
population pyramid:

Dependency ratios

total dependency ratio: 35.9 (2015 est.)
youth dependency ratio: 15.2 (2015 est.)
elderly dependency ratio: 20.7 (2015 est.)
potential support ratio: 4.8 (2015 est.)

Median age

total: 44.8 years (2018 est.)
male: 43.7 years
female: 45.5 years
country comparison to the world: 8

Population growth rate

0.29% (2018 est.)
country comparison to the world: 172

Birth rate

8.8 births/1,000 population (2018 est.)
country comparison to the world: 209

Death rate

7.6 deaths/1,000 population (2018 est.)
country comparison to the world: 103

Net migration rate

1.7 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2018 est.)
country comparison to the world: 54

Population distribution

population fairly evenly distributed

Urbanization

urban population: 100% of total population(2019)
rate of urbanization: 0.82% annual rate of change(2015-20 est.)

Major urban areas - population

7.491 million Hong Kong (2019)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.12 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.1 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 0.75 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female
total population: 0.87 male(s)/female (2018 est.)

Mother's mean age at first birth

29.8 years (2008 est.)

Infant mortality rate

total: 2.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2018 est.)
male: 2.9 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 2.5 deaths/1,000 live births
country comparison to the world: 213

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 83.1 years (2018 est.)
male: 80.4 years
female: 86 years
country comparison to the world: 6

Total fertility rate

1.2 children born/woman (2018 est.)
country comparison to the world: 221

Contraceptive prevalence rate

74.8% (2012)

Physicians density

1.96 physicians/1,000 population (2018)

Hospital bed density

5.4 beds/1,000 population (2018)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths

NA

Education expenditures

3.3% of GDP (2018)
country comparison to the world: 128

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

total: 16 years
male: 16 years
female: 16 years (2014)

Unemployment, youth ages 15-24

total: 8.7%
male: 9.3%
female: 8.2% (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 138

Government

Country name

conventional long form: Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
conventional short form: Hong Kong
local long form: Heung Kong Takpit Hangching Ku (Eitel/Dyer-Ball)
local short form: Heung Kong (Eitel/Dyer-Ball)
abbreviation: HK
etymology: probably an imprecise phonetic rendering of the Cantonese name meaning "fragrant harbor"

Dependency status

special administrative region of the People's Republic of China

Government type

presidential limited democracy; a special administrative region of the People's Republic of China

Administrative divisions

none (special administrative region of the People's Republic of China)

Independence

none (special administrative region of China)

National holiday

National Day (Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China), 1 October (1949); note - 1 July (1997) is celebrated as Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Establishment Day

Constitution

history: several previous (governance documents while under British authority); latest drafted April 1988 to February 1989, approved March 1990, effective 1 July 1997 (Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China serves as the constitution); note - since 1990, China's National People's Congress has interpreted specific articles of the Basic Law
amendments: proposed by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC), the People’s Republic of China State Council, and the Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong; submittal of proposals to the NPC requires two-thirds majority vote by the Legislative Council of Hong Kong, approval by two thirds of Hong Kong’s deputies to the NPC, and approval by the Hong Kong chief executive; final passage requires approval by the NPC

Legal system

mixed legal system of common law based on the English model and Chinese customary law (in matters of family and land tenure)

Citizenship

see China

Suffrage

18 years of age in direct elections for half of the Legislative Council seats and all of the seats in 18 district councils; universal for permanent residents living in the territory of Hong Kong for the past 7 years; note - in indirect elections, suffrage is limited to about 220,000 members of functional constituencies for the other half of the legislature and a 1,200-member election committee for the chief executive drawn from broad sectoral groupings, central government bodies, municipal organizations, and elected Hong Kong officials

Executive branch

chief of state: President of China XI Jinping (since 14 March 2013)
head of government: Chief Executive Carrie LAM (since 1 July 2017)
cabinet: Executive Council or ExCo appointed by the chief executive
elections/appointments: president indirectly elected by National People's Congress for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 17 March 2018 (next to be held in March 2023); chief executive indirectly elected by the Election Committee and appointed by the PRC Government for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 26 March 2017 (next to be held in 2022)
election results: Carrie LAM elected chief executive; Election Committee vote - Carrie LAM 777, John TSANG 365, WOO Kwok-hing 21, invalid 23
note: the Legislative Council voted in June 2010 to expand the Election Committee to 1,200 members

Legislative branch

description: unicameral Legislative Council or LegCo (70 seats; 35 members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by party-list proportional representation vote; 30 members indirectly elected by the approximately 220,000 members of various functional constituencies based on a variety of methods; 5 at large "super-seat" members directly elected by all of Hong Kong’s eligible voters who do not participate in a functional constituency; members serve 4-year terms)
elections: last held on 4 September 2016; (next to be held in September 2020); note - byelection held on 11 March and 25 November 2018 to fill 5 seats left vacant after 5 legislators were removed from office
election results: percent of vote by block - pro-democracy 36%; pro-Beijing 40.2%, localist 19%, other 4.8%; seats by block/party - pro-Beijing 40 (DAB 12, BPA 7, FTU 5, Liberal Party 4, NPP 3, other 9); pro-democracy 23 (Democratic Party 7, Civic Party 6, PP-LSD 2, Professional Commons 2, Labor 1, NWSC 1, PTU 1, other democrats 3), localists 6 (ALLinHK 2, CP-PPI-HKRO 1, Demosisto 1, Democracy Groundwork 1, other localist 1), non-aligned independent 1; composition - men 59, women 11, percent of women 15.7%; note - 2 localists were barred from taking office in November 2016 and 4 pro-democracy legislators were removed in July 2017; two pan-democratic, two DAB, and one pro-establishment candidates won the byelections in 2018 to fill the seats vacated by the 5 legislators removed from office; one pro-democracy seat remains unfilled pending a court appeal; percent of vote by block as of March 2019 - pro-Beijing 62% pro-democracy 38%; seats by block/party as of March 2019 - pro-Beijing 43 (DAB 13, BPA 7, FTU 5, Liberal Party 4, NPP 3, other 11); pro-democracy 26 (Democratic Party 7, Civic Party 5, Professional Commons 2, Civic Passion 1, Labor 1 PTU 1, Council Front 6, independent 3); composition as of March 2019 - men 58, women 11; percent of women 15.7%
 

Judicial branch

highest courts: Court of Final Appeal (consists of the chief justice, 3 permanent judges, and 20 non-permanent judges); note - a sitting bench consists of the chief justice, 3 permanent judges, and 1 non-permanent judge
judge selection and term of office: all judges appointed by the Hong Kong Chief Executive upon the recommendation of the Judicial Officers Recommendation Commission, an independent body consisting of the Secretary for Justice, other judges, and judicial and legal professionals; permanent judges serve until normal retirement at age 65, but term can be extended; non-permanent judges appointed for renewable 3-year terms without age limit
subordinate courts: High Court (consists of the Court of Appeal and Court of First Instance); District Courts (includes Family and Land Courts); magistrates' courts; specialized tribunals

Political parties and leaders

parties:
ALLinHK (alliance of 6 localist groups)
Business and Professional Alliance or BPA [LO Wai-kwok]
Civic Party [Alvin YEUNG]
Civic Passion or CP [CHENG Chung-tai] (part of Civic Passion-Proletariat Political Institute-Hong Kong Resurgence Order alliance or CP-PPI-HKRO that dissolved after the 2016 election)
Democracy Groundwork [LAU Siu-lai]
Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong or DAB [Starry LEE Wai-king]
Democratic Party [WU Chi-wai]
Demosisto [Ivan LAM]
Federation of Trade Unions or FTU [Stanley NG Chau-pei]
Labor Party [Steven KWOK Wing-kin]
League of Social Democrats or LSD [Avery NG Man-yuen]
Liberal Party [Felix CHUNG Kwok-pan]
Neighborhood and Workers Service Center or NWSC [LEUNG Yui-chung]
New People's Party or NPP [Regina IP Lau Su-yee]
People Power or PP [Raymond CHAN]
Youngspiration [Sixtus "Baggio" LEUNG Chung-hang]
other:
Professional Commons [Charles Peter MOK] (think tank)
Professional Teachers Union or PTU
note: political blocks include: pro-democracy - Civic Party, Democratic Party, Labor Party, LSD, NWSC, PP, Professional Commons, PTU; pro-Beijing - DAB, FTU, Liberal Party, NPP, BPA; localist - ALLinHK, CP, Democracy Groundwork, Demosisto; there is no political party ordinance, so there are no registered political parties; politically active groups register as societies or companies

International organization participation

ADB, APEC, BIS, FATF, ICC (national committees), IHO, IMF, IMO (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITUC (NGOs), UNWTO (associate), UPU, WCO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US

none (Special Administrative Region of China); Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (HKETO) carries out normal liaison activities and communication with the US Government and other US entities; Eddie MAK, JP (since 3 July 2018) is the Hong Kong Commissioner to the US Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region; address: 1520 18th Street NW, Washington, DC 20036; telephone: [1] 202 331-8947; FAX: [1] 202 331-8958
HKETO offices: New York, San Francisco

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission: Consul General Hanscom SMITH (since July 2019); note - also accredited to Macau
telephone: [852] 2523-9011
embassy: U. S. Consulate General Hong Kong and Macau
26 Garden Road
Central, Hong Kong
mailing address: Unit 8000, Box 1, DPO AP 96521-0006
FAX: [852] 2845-1598
consulate(s) general: 26 Garden Road, Hong Kong

Flag description

red with a stylized, white, five-petal Bauhinia flower in the center; each petal contains a small, red, five-pointed star in its middle; the red color is the same as that on the Chinese flag and represents the motherland; the fragrant Bauhinia - developed in Hong Kong the late 19th century - has come to symbolize the region; the five stars echo those on the flag of China

National symbol(s)

orchid tree flower; national colors: red, white

National anthem

note: as a Special Administrative Region of China, "Yiyongjun Jinxingqu" is the official anthem (see China)

Economy

Economy - overview

Hong Kong has a free market economy, highly dependent on international trade and finance - the value of goods and services trade, including the sizable share of reexports, is about four times GDP. Hong Kong has no tariffs on imported goods, and it levies excise duties on only four commodities, whether imported or produced locally: hard alcohol, tobacco, oil, and methyl alcohol. There are no quotas or dumping laws. Hong Kong continues to link its currency closely to the US dollar, maintaining an arrangement established in 1983.Excess liquidity, low interest rates and a tight housing supply have caused Hong Kong property prices to rise rapidly. The lower and middle-income segments of the population increasingly find housing unaffordable.Hong Kong's open economy has left it exposed to the global economic situation. Its continued reliance on foreign trade and investment makes it vulnerable to renewed global financial market volatility or a slowdown in the global economy.Mainland China has long been Hong Kong's largest trading partner, accounting for about half of Hong Kong's total trade by value. Hong Kong's natural resources are limited, and food and raw materials must be imported. As a result of China's easing of travel restrictions, the number of mainland tourists to the territory surged from 4.5 million in 2001 to 47.3 million in 2014, outnumbering visitors from all other countries combined. After peaking in 2014, overall tourist arrivals dropped 2.5% in 2015 and 4.5% in 2016. The tourism sector rebounded in 2017, with visitor arrivals rising 3.2% to 58.47 million. Travelers from Mainland China totaled 44.45 million, accounting for 76% of the total.The Hong Kong Government is promoting the Special Administrative Region (SAR) as the preferred business hub for renminbi (RMB) internationalization. Hong Kong residents are allowed to establish RMB-denominated savings accounts, RMB-denominated corporate and Chinese government bonds have been issued in Hong Kong, RMB trade settlement is allowed, and investment schemes such as the Renminbi Qualified Foreign Institutional Investor (RQFII) Program was first launched in Hong Kong. Offshore RMB activities experienced a setback, however, after the People’s Bank of China changed the way it set the central parity rate in August 2015. RMB deposits in Hong Kong fell from 1.0 trillion RMB at the end of 2014 to 559 billion RMB at the end of 2017, while RMB trade settlement handled by banks in Hong Kong also shrank from 6.8 trillion RMB in 2015 to 3.9 trillion RMB in 2017.Hong Kong has also established itself as the premier stock market for Chinese firms seeking to list abroad. In 2015, mainland Chinese companies constituted about 50% of the firms listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and accounted for about 66% of the exchange's market capitalization.During the past decade, as Hong Kong's manufacturing industry moved to the mainland, its service industry has grown rapidly. In 2014, Hong Kong and China signed a new agreement on achieving basic liberalization of trade in services in Guangdong Province under the Closer Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), adopted in 2003 to forge closer ties between Hong Kong and the mainland. The new measures, which took effect in March 2015, cover a negative list and a most-favored treatment provision. On the basis of the Guangdong Agreement, the Agreement on Trade in Services signed in November 2015 further enhanced liberalization, including extending the implementation of the majority of Guangdong pilot liberalization measures to the whole Mainland, reducing the restrictive measures in the negative list, and adding measures in the positive lists for cross-border services as well as cultural and telecommunications services. In June 2017, the Investment Agreement and the Agreement on Economic and Technical Cooperation (Ecotech Agreement) were signed under the framework of CEPA.Hong Kong’s economic integration with the mainland continues to be most evident in the banking and finance sector. Initiatives like the Hong Kong-Shanghai Stock Connect, the Hong Kong- Shenzhen Stock Connect the Mutual Recognition of Funds, and the Bond Connect scheme are all important steps towards opening up the Mainland’s capital markets and have reinforced Hong Kong’s role as China’s leading offshore RMB market. Additional connect schemes such as ETF Connect (for exchange-traded fund products) are also under exploration by Hong Kong authorities. In 2017, Chief Executive Carrie LAM announced plans to increase government spending on research and development, education, and technological innovation with the aim of spurring continued economic growth through greater sector diversification.

GDP (purchasing power parity)

$455.9 billion (2017 est.)
$439.2 billion (2016 est.)
$429.9 billion (2015 est.)
note: data are in 2017 dollars
country comparison to the world: 43

GDP (official exchange rate)

$341.4 billion (2017 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

3.8% (2017 est.)
2.2% (2016 est.)
2.4% (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 87

GDP - per capita (PPP)

$61,500 (2017 est.)
$59,500 (2016 est.)
$58,800 (2015 est.)
note: data are in 2017 dollars
country comparison to the world: 18

Gross national saving

26.6% of GDP (2017 est.)
25.5% of GDP (2016 est.)
24.9% of GDP (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 47

GDP - composition, by end use

household consumption: 67% (2017 est.)
government consumption: 9.9% (2017 est.)
investment in fixed capital: 21.8% (2017 est.)
investment in inventories: 0.4% (2017 est.)
exports of goods and services: 188% (2017 est.)
imports of goods and services: -187.1% (2017 est.)

GDP - composition, by sector of origin

agriculture: 0.1% (2017 est.)
industry: 7.6% (2017 est.)
services: 92.3% (2017 est.)

Agriculture - products

fresh vegetables and fruit; poultry, pork; fish

Industries

trading and logistics, financial services, professional services, tourism, cultural and creative, clothing and textiles, shipping, electronics, toys, clocks and watches

Industrial production growth rate

1.7% (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 139

Labor force

3.965 million (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 94

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture: 3.8% (2013 est.)
industry: 2% (2016 est.)
services: 54.5% (2016 est.)
industry and services: 12.5% (2013 est.)
agriculture/fishing/forestry/mining: 10.1% (2013)
manufacturing: 17.1% (2013 est.)
note: above data exclude public sector

Unemployment rate

3.1% (2017 est.)
3.4% (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 38

Population below poverty line

19.9% (2016 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 1.8%NA
highest 10%: 38.1%NA (2016)

Distribution of family income - Gini index

53.9 (2016)
53.7 (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 9

Budget

revenues: 79.34 billion (2017 est.)
expenditures: 61.64 billion (2017 est.)

Taxes and other revenues

23.2% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 128

Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)

5.2% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 6

Public debt

0.1% of GDP (2017 est.)
0.1% of GDP (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 208

Fiscal year

1 April - 31 March

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

1.5% (2017 est.)
2.4% (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 81

Central bank discount rate

1.75% (31 December 2017)
1% (31 December 2016)
country comparison to the world: 123

Commercial bank prime lending rate

5% (31 December 2017 est.)
5% (31 December 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 150

Stock of narrow money

$311.1 billion (31 December 2017 est.)
$285.5 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 16

Stock of broad money

$311.1 billion (31 December 2017 est.)
$285.5 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 16

Stock of domestic credit

$825.3 billion (31 December 2017 est.)
$676.5 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 19

Market value of publicly traded shares

$4.359 trillion (31 December 2017 est.)
$3.175 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
$3.165 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 4

Current account balance

$14.75 billion (2017 est.)
$12.71 billion (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 20

Exports

$537.8 billion (2017 est.)
$460 billion (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 8

Exports - partners

China 54.1%, US 7.7% (2017)

Exports - commodities

electrical machinery and appliances, textiles, apparel, watches and clocks, toys, "jewelry, goldsmiths' and silversmiths' wares, and other articles of precious or semi-precious materials"; Hong Kong plays an important role as entrepot to the Chinese mainland; in 2017, 58% of Hong Kong’s re-exports originated in mainland China, and 54% were destined for the Chinese mainland

Imports

$561.8 billion (2017 est.)
$518.2 billion (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 7

Imports - commodities

raw materials and semi-manufactures, consumer goods, capital goods, foodstuffs, fuel (most is reexported)

Imports - partners

China 44.6%, Singapore 6.4%, Japan 6.1%, South Korea 5.5%, US 5.2% (2017)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

$431.4 billion (31 December 2017 est.)
$386.2 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 7

Debt - external

$633.6 billion (31 December 2017 est.)
$1.349 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 18

Stock of direct foreign investment - at home

$2.2 trillion (31 December 2017 est.)
$1.616 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 3

Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad

$2.036 trillion (31 December 2017 est.)
$1.538 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 5

Exchange rates

Hong Kong dollars (HKD) per US dollar -
7.82 (2017 est.)
7.76 (2016 est.)
7.762 (2015 est.)
7.752 (2014 est.)
7.754 (2013 est.)

Energy

Electricity access

electrification - total population: 100% (2016)

Electricity - production

35.97 billion kWh (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 60

Electricity - consumption

41.84 billion kWh (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 54

Electricity - exports

1.205 billion kWh (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 55

Electricity - imports

11.62 billion kWh (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 21

Electricity - installed generating capacity

12.63 million kW (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 55

Electricity - from fossil fuels

100% of total installed capacity (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 9

Electricity - from nuclear fuels

0% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 108

Electricity - from hydroelectric plants

0% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 178

Electricity - from other renewable sources

0% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 192

Crude oil - production

0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
country comparison to the world: 150

Crude oil - exports

0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 138

Crude oil - imports

0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 142

Crude oil - proved reserves

0 bbl (1 January 2018 est.)
country comparison to the world: 146

Refined petroleum products - production

0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 158

Refined petroleum products - consumption

403,100 bbl/day (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 38

Refined petroleum products - exports

13,570 bbl/day (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 76

Refined petroleum products - imports

402,100 bbl/day (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 22

Natural gas - production

0 cu m (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 147

Natural gas - consumption

3.37 billion cu m (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 69

Natural gas - exports

0 cu m (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 122

Natural gas - imports

3.37 billion cu m (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 43

Natural gas - proved reserves

0 cu m (1 January 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 148

Carbon dioxide emissions from consumption of energy

102.5 million Mt (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 43

Communications

Telephones - fixed lines

total subscriptions: 4,266,837
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 59 (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 32

Telephones - mobile cellular

total subscriptions: 18,340,347
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 255 (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 61

Telephone system

general assessment: modern facilities provide excellent domestic and international services; some of the highest peak average broadband speeds in the world; HK aims to be among the earliest adopters of 5G mobile technology as early as 2020; almost all households have access to high-speed broadband connectivity; in the next five years the government has organized the development of 'smart cities' in six areas - "smart mobility", "smart living", "smart environment", "smart people", "smart government", and "smart economy"  by 2022 (2018)
domestic: microwave radio relay links and extensive fiber-optic network; fixed-line is 59 per 100 and mobile-cellular is 255 per 100 (2018)
international: country code - 852; APG, ASE, EAC-C2C, HK-G, Bay-to-Bay Express Cable System, H2 Cable, HKA, SJC, SJC2, PLCN, SeaMeWe-3, TGN-IA, APCN-2, AAG, FLAG and FEA submarine cables provide connections to Asia, US, Australia, the Middle East, and Europe; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Pacific Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean); coaxial cable to Guangzhou, China (2019)

Broadcast media

4 commercial terrestrial TV networks each with multiple stations; multi-channel satellite and cable TV systems available; 3 licensed broadcasters of terrestrial radio, one of which is government funded, operate about 12 radio stations; note - 4 digital radio broadcasters operated in Hong Kong from 2010 to 2017, but all digital radio services were terminated in September 2017 due to weak market demand (2019)

Internet country code

.hk

Internet users

total: 6.066 million
percent of population: 85% (July 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 68

Broadband - fixed subscriptions

total: 2,645,752
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 37 (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 43

Military and Security

Military and security forces

no regular indigenous military forces; Hong Kong Police Force; Hong Kong garrison of China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) includes elements of the PLA Army, PLA Navy, and PLA Air Force; these forces are under the direct leadership of the Central Military Commission in Beijing and under administrative control of the adjacent Southern Theater Command (2019)

Military - note

defense is the responsibility of China

Transportation

National air transport system

number of registered air carriers: 7(registered in China) (2015)
inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 253(registered in China) (2015)
annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 41,867,157 (2015)
annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 11.294 billionmt-km (2015)

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

B-H (2016)

Airports

2 (2013)
country comparison to the world: 201

Airports - with paved runways

total: 2 (2017)
over 3,047 m: 1 (2017)
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2017)

Heliports

9 (2013)

Roadways

total: 2,107 km (2017)
paved: 2,107 km (2017)
country comparison to the world: 166

Merchant marine

total: 2,615
by type: bulk carrier 1143, container ship 499, general cargo 217, oil tanker 355, other 401 (2018)
country comparison to the world: 10

Ports and terminals

major seaport(s): Hong Kong
container port(s) (TEUs): Hong Kong (20,770,000) (2017)

Transnational Issues

Disputes - international

Hong Kong plans to reduce its 2,800-hectare Frontier Closed Area (FCA) to 400 hectares by 2015; the FCA was established in 1951 as a buffer zone between Hong Kong and mainland China to prevent illegal migration from and the smuggling of goods

Illicit drugs

despite strenuous law enforcement efforts, faces difficult challenges in controlling transit of heroin and methamphetamine to regional and world markets; modern banking system provides conduit for money laundering; rising indigenous use of synthetic drugs, especially among young people

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