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Most Hongkongers think perks such as consumption vouchers unnecessary in coming budget, finance chief says
- Financial Secretary Paul Chan also predicts economy will be more stable this year owing to falling interest rates
- Chan says government spent ‘a lot of money’ during the pandemic, with city’s deficit reaching about HK$100 billion in the current financial year
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Most Hongkongers think perks such as consumption vouchers are unnecessary in the coming budget, the finance minister has said while predicting the economy will be more stable this year owing to falling interest rates.
Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po also said the city would have to rely on local consumption and tourism in the short term as exports might not increase significantly this year.
“For this year’s budget, if you are talking about large-scale easing measures like in previous years, most of the opinions we collected during our consultation period indicated that we should not introduce them again, they are not necessary,” Chan told a radio programme on Sunday.
“The economy may be recovering at a slower pace, but it is still positive growth. We also have to think about the government’s ability to afford these measures financially.”
The government gave residents vouchers for three consecutive years in an attempt to boost consumption amid an economic slump caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The scheme was among several measures aimed at kick-starting the city’s economic recovery.
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