Hong Kong 2019 Exports Seen as Worst in Decade, Trade Body Says

(Bloomberg) --

Hong Kong’s economic situation continues to darken, with the city’s trade body now expecting exports to shrink this year to the worst levels in a decade amid the ongoing U.S.-China trade war and slowing global economy.

The Hong Kong Trade Development Council slashed its 2019 growth forecast to a 4% contraction, a further reduction from prior expectations of 2% growth in June, Director of Research Nicholas Kwan said in a press release.

Such a reading “will be the worst year since 2009,” Kwan said in a briefing detailing the revision. “It is one of the worst in a decade without a major, major financial crisis.”

Hong Kong’s economy has come under intense pressure this year, buffeted by twin headwinds from the trade war abroad and domestically by months of anti-government protests that have also severely disrupted the city’s retail and tourism sectors.

The city’s exports decreased for a ninth straight month in July, down 5.7%, according to the most recent reading from the Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department. The measure retreated the most since February 2016 in June, the data show.

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