World Facts Index
 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 (SAR) 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 next 50 years.
Geography of Hong Kong
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Location:
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Eastern Asia, bordering the
South China Sea and China |
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Coordinates:
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22 15 N, 114 10 E |
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Area:
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total: 1,092 sq km
water: 50 sq km
land: 1,042 sq km |
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Area comparative:
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six times the size of
Washington, DC |
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Land boundaries:
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total: 30 km
border countries: China 30 km |
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Coastline:
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733 km |
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Maritime claims:
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territorial sea: 3
NM |
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Climate:
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tropical monsoon; cool and
humid in winter, hot and rainy from spring through summer, warm and
sunny in fall |
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Terrain:
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hilly to mountainous with
steep slopes; lowlands in north |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: South
China Sea 0 m
highest point: Tai Mo Shan 958 m |
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Natural resources:
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outstanding deepwater
harbor, feldspar |
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Natural hazards:
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occasional typhoons |
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Environment current issues:
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air and water pollution
from rapid urbanization |
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Geography - note:
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more than 200 islands
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Population of Hong Kong
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Population:
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7,018,636 (July 2008 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 13.5% (male 488,607/female 445,593)
15-64 years: 73.7% (male 2,495,679/female 2,620,336)
65 years and over: 12.8% (male 413,031/female 477,186) |
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Median age:
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40.7 years |
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Growth rate:
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0.59% |
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Infant mortality:
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2.95 deaths/1,000 live births |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 81.59 years
male: 78.9 years
female: 84.5 years |
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Fertility rate:
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0.95 children born/woman |
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Nationality:
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noun: Chinese/Hong Konger
adjective: Chinese/Hong Kong |
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Ethnic groups:
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Chinese 95%, other 5% |
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Religions:
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eclectic mixture of local religions 90%,
Christian 10% |
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Languages:
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Chinese (Cantonese), English; both are
official |
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Literacy:
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definition: age 15 and over has ever
attended school
total : 94%
male: 97.1%
female: 90.5%
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Government
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Country name:
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conventional long form: Hong Kong
Special Administrative Region
local short form: Xianggang
local long form: Xianggang Tebie Xingzhengqu
abbreviation: HK |
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Dependency status:
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special administrative region of China |
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Government type:
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limited democracy |
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Administrative divisions:
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none (special administrative region of
China) |
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Independence:
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none (special administrative region of
China) |
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National holiday:
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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 |
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Constitution:
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Basic Law approved in March 1990 by China's
National People's Congress is Hong Kong's "mini-constitution" |
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Legal system:
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based on English common law |
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Suffrage:
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direct election 18 years of age; universal
for permanent residents living in the territory of Hong Kong for the past seven years;
indirect election limited to about 100,000 members of functional constituencies and an
800-member election committee drawn from broad regional groupings, municipal
organizations, and central government bodies |
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Executive branch:
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chief of state: President of China HU Jintao
(since 15 March 2003)
head of government: Chief Executive Donald TSANG (since 24 June 2005)
cabinet: Executive Council consists of 15 official members and 16 non-official
members
elections: chief executive elected for five-year term by 800-member electoral
committee; last held on 25 March 2007 (next to be held in 2012). |
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Legislative branch:
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unicameral Legislative Council or LEGCO (60 seats; in 2004
30 seats indirectly elected by functional constituencies, 30 elected by popular vote;
members serve four-year terms) |
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Judicial branch:
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Court of Final Appeal in the Hong Kong
Special Administrative Region |
Economy
Hong Kong has a free market economy highly dependent on international
trade. In 2006, the total value of goods and services trade, including the
sizable share of reexports, was equivalent to 400% of GDP. The territory has
become increasingly integrated with mainland China over the past few years
through trade, tourism, and financial links. The mainland has long been Hong
Kong's largest trading partner, accounting for 46% of Hong Kong's total trade
by value in 2006. As a result of China's easing of travel restrictions, the
number of mainland tourists to the territory has surged from 4.5 million in
2001 to 13.6 million in 2006, when they outnumbered visitors from all other
countries combined. Hong Kong has also established itself as the premier stock
market for Chinese firms seeking to list abroad. Bolstered by several
successful initial public offerings in early 2007, by September 2007 mainland
companies accounted for one-third of the firms listed on the Hong Kong Stock
Exchange, and more than half 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 and now accounts for 91% of the
territory's GDP. Hong Kong's natural resources are limited, and food and raw
materials must be imported. GDP growth averaged a strong 5% from 1989 to 2007,
despite the economy suffering two recessions during the Asian financial crisis
in 1997-98 and the global downturn in 2001-02. Hong Kong continues to link its
currency closely to the US dollar, maintaining an arrangement established in
1983.
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GDP:
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$293.3 billion (2007 est.) |
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GDP growth rate:
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7.3% |
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GDP per capita:
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$42,000 |
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GDP composition by sector:
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agriculture: 0.1%
industry: 9.2%
services: 90.6% |
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Inflation rate:
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0.9% |
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Labor force:
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3.61 million |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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manufacturing 7.5%, construction 2.9%, wholesale and
retail trade, restaurants, and hotels 43.9%, financing, insurance, and real estate 19.6%,
transport and communications 7.1%, community and social services 18.8%
note: above data exclude public sector |
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Unemployment:
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5.5% |
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Budget:
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revenues: $31.31 billion
expenditures: $32.3 billion |
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Electricity production by source:
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fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
other: 0% |
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Industries:
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textiles, clothing, tourism, banking,
shipping, electronics, plastics, toys, watches, clocks |
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Agriculture:
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fresh vegetables, poultry, fish, pork |
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Exports:
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electrical machinery and appliances, textiles, apparel,
footwear, watches and clocks, toys, plastics, precious stones, printed material |
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Export partners:
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China 45%, US 16.1%, Japan 5.3% |
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Imports:
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raw materials and semi-manufactures, consumer goods,
capital goods, foodstuffs, fuel (most is re-exported) |
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Import partners:
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China 45%, Japan 11%, Taiwan 7.2%, Singapore 5.8%, US
5.1%, South Korea 4.4% |
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Currency:
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Hong Kong dollar (HKD) |
SOURCES: The CIA World Factbook, U.S. Department of State, Area Handbook of the US Library of Congress
Copyright 2004 - 2008 worldfacts.us |