Lower ranking an alarm

That Hong Kong has seen its economic competitiveness declining, no doubt, is a bad news for anyone who cares for the city. But it is not totally a bad thing if the frustrating news can add to the sense of crisis among Hong Kong people and lead stakeholders into working out the city's fundamental economic problems together.

It is neither secret nor advanced knowledge that the city's fundamental economic problems stem from a narrow economic base, which has seen the local economy overly relying on the real estate and finance sectors.

The excessive profits these two sectors guarantee have led to a concentration of capital on these sectors, and hindered local industries from upgrading and the economy from diversifying as there is no strong incentive for capitalists to venture into other sectors which are less profitable.

The high land-price policy and the ideology of laissez-faire adopted by the colonial government and inherited by the SAR government have also contributed to the de-industrialization, depriving the city the chance to diversify its economy.

As a result, a bunch of deep-rooted social problems such as wealth gap, working poor and aging of population have emerged, fueling political wrangles.

Recognizing these economic and social problems, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying's administration has vigorously pursued various relevant policies under its governing principle of "seeking changes while maintaining overall stability".

Unfortunately, for obvious reasons the opposition camp and some vested interests have stood in the way, trying their best to bring down the Leung administration with various tactics at the expense of Hong Kong's overall interest.

Political wrangles have contributed to the decline of the city's competitiveness as they have harmed government efficiency, according to the World Competitiveness Ranking 2013.

The latest news about the city's weakening competitiveness should serve as a wake-up call to all stakeholders of society, awakening us to the reality that the local economy could deteriorate unless we work together to solve its fundamental problems.

The author is a current affairs commentator.

(HK Edition 05/31/2013 page9)