โ€˜Hong Kong must tell US government, business sector apart,โ€™ Regina Ip says


Hong Kong should not give up on its traditional trade partners, such as the United States, a top government adviser has said, stressing that it is important for the city to distinguish between the US administration and business sector despite an escalating tariff war.

Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, convenor of Hong Kongโ€™s top policy decision-making body, the Executive Council, also said on Wednesday that she believed the US would lose in the trade war, pointing to the American Chamber of Commerceโ€™s supportive stance towards the cityโ€™s government.

โ€œWe have to tell the Trump administration and US business sector apart, the latter is also a victim,โ€ Ip told a radio show, as she reckoned with Hong Kongโ€™s need to diversify its markets across other parts of the world.

โ€œAs Xia [Baolong] said, Hong Kong is the region with the largest US trade surplus โ€ฆ and if China stops buying oil, gas and agricultural products, it will cause a significant impact,โ€ she said, referring to Beijingโ€™s top official overseeing Hong Kong affairs.

โ€œThe US will not benefit from continuing with the trade war, I think it will be defeated ultimately.โ€

Regina Ip has said that Hong Kong should diversify its markets across other parts of the world. Photo: Elson Li
Regina Ip has said that Hong Kong should diversify its markets across other parts of the world. Photo: Elson Li
In its first comments since the announcement of the so-called US reciprocal tariffs that rattled global markets, AmCham said on Monday that it supported the Hong Kong governmentโ€™s stance that the city was a separate customs entity distinct from mainland China.

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