(Bloomberg) -- Hong Kong’s chief executive said the government is considering ‘‘bold’’ measures to shore up the faltering economy, in a press conference that gave no new policy details or concessions to protesters.
The measures would cover a variety of livelihood issues including housing, Carrie Lam said Friday after meeting business leaders, without elaborating. Lam is due to deliver her annual policy address in October.
Hong Kong’s airport bolstered security Friday as protesters began a three-day sit-in at the arrivals hall of its main terminal, kicking off a 10th straight weekend of anti-China demonstrations. Weeks of protests over the government’s extradition bill have hit confidence, retail spending and business activity hard at a time when the economy was already slowing.
Gross domestic product contracted in the second quarter from the previous three months, leaving open the prospect of a technical recession if the unrest continues. Lam said that the economic downdraft caused by Hong Kong’s protests is worse than that during the SARS epidemic and the 2008 global financial crisis.
Lam admitted that while many people are unsatisfied with the government, it doesn’t mean they should tolerate violence.
“Dissatisfaction towards the government is not justification to tolerate violence,” she said.
“We must stop the violent protests,” she added. “Hong Kong cannot have large-scale, spontaneous protests that obstruct traffic and daily operations.”
Hong Kong witnessed the deepest deterioration in private sector conditions for over a decade at the start of the third quarter, according to IHS Markit. The former British colony’s purchasing manager gauge sank to 43.8 in July from 47.9 in June.
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