The Unstoppable Economy Of Hong Kong: The Land Of Billionaires

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  • čas přidán 26. 06. 2024
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    Hong Kong has done very well for itself as a global-middle-man. And the meteoric rise of its neighboring economy, China, has only strengthened the city’s already-prosperous position.
    But, of course, if you follow the news, you probably already know that Hong Kong has seen better days. Global trade tensions, prolonged protests, and good-old-fashioned competition have dramatically impacted its economy in recent years.
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Komentáře • 1,3K

  • @BusinessCasual
    @BusinessCasual Před 4 lety +506

    Thanks for shouting out our Souk Stock Exchange mini-docu! 🤘
    czcams.com/video/hk4THbOoho0/video.html

    • @notnidan
      @notnidan Před 4 lety +2

      Hey, great to see your awesome channel being given the right platform to be promoted

    • @matpk
      @matpk Před 4 lety +3

      Semi Democratic description is OUTDATED. Today it's more like Vichy Hong Kong with Nazi China up North.
      👀👁👀 need to choose whether go down as Churchill or useless Chamberlain route when facing #Chinazi.

    • @dashknow5082
      @dashknow5082 Před 4 lety

      Hello, where do you get the stock footages in your video?

    • @joylm9108
      @joylm9108 Před 4 lety

      Souk al manackh 🤣

    • @colors6692
      @colors6692 Před 2 lety

      Answer DashKnow's question! It would be the decent thing to do seeing as EE shouted out your video AND put a link in the description AND then you go ahead and get greedy and put your own link in the comment section!

  • @darius2640
    @darius2640 Před 4 lety +1062

    its a shame Hong Kong isn't a monarchy, cause then their leader would be called King Kong

  • @jammieproductions9164
    @jammieproductions9164 Před 4 lety +1541

    Petition to change the name of this channel to Stonks explained

  • @stevem815
    @stevem815 Před 4 lety +326

    One funny thing in the footage: the 'protesters occupying shopping malls' were actually Phillipino maids sharing their day off together in the space underneath the HSBC building in Central. Made me smile.

  • @Peizxcv
    @Peizxcv Před 4 lety +320

    9:43 - that's not protesters. That's Filipino/Indonesian OFWs having a day off on Sunday. They are nice and polite people

    • @noahpolicarpio1530
      @noahpolicarpio1530 Před 4 lety +40

      Yeah, I saw them all th time in Central back then. Some of the nicest people around, though they can be noisy.

    • @RusticKey
      @RusticKey Před 4 lety +33

      @@noahpolicarpio1530 As an Indonesian with lots of Filipino friends, I can testify for this claim.

    • @gebys4559
      @gebys4559 Před 4 lety +3

      Yeah saw that as well.

    • @pelicane136
      @pelicane136 Před 4 lety +2

      And that's not a mall lol

    • @terencekwong3033
      @terencekwong3033 Před 4 lety +5

      I'm 2 mins in, I feel like I should save my time after seeing ur comment. That's every Sunday activity for Filipino workers in HK. Complete ignorance from EE.

  • @Paranoid_Found
    @Paranoid_Found Před 4 lety +401

    I have relatives in Hong Kong living in pathetically small homes and relies on government programs. I also have relatives in Hong Kong working in the lucrative banking sector. Truly bizarre.

    • @tangkicheung6301
      @tangkicheung6301 Před 4 lety +29

      Well , I live in Hong Kong so I get see all the bizarre first hand, what I can only say is the Real estate it’s horrifying , with the amount of cash of A Lamborghini or private home with garage and things you can get a apartment in Hong Kong .

    • @WUTONG-
      @WUTONG- Před 4 lety +2

      资本主义的地区贫富差距大很正常

    • @tragedyofwind
      @tragedyofwind Před 4 lety +10

      this is what you get in a gov squish money from the people and does not give back, china being the most capitalist country in the world, and only contribute resource to a selected few, income imbalance happens.

    • @tragedyofwind
      @tragedyofwind Před 4 lety +7

      @@WUTONG- like in china , one of the biggest capitalist in the world.

    • @boshi9
      @boshi9 Před 4 lety +25

      tragedyofwind What are you talking about? How does the government “squish money from the people”? HK has some of the lowest taxes in the developed world, way below the US and Europe. Income imbalance is the natural outcome of capitalism, i.e. it’s always much harder to make your first million than the second. If you’re a billionaire, making another million can take no effort at all.

  • @FingeringThings
    @FingeringThings Před 4 lety +763

    Last time I was this early Hong Kong housing was affordable

    • @drunkensailor3736
      @drunkensailor3736 Před 4 lety +13

      🤣LOL. The protesters are kind of in a catch 22 between protesting and hurting the economy or keeping the economy going but letting China takeover. Found a great video that analyses this, the future of Hong Kong and US-China tensions: czcams.com/video/uMm67LHxR7M/video.html
      czcams.com/video/uMm67LHxR7M/video.html

    • @achubbs8641
      @achubbs8641 Před 4 lety

      Wew

    • @noahpolicarpio1530
      @noahpolicarpio1530 Před 4 lety

      Oof

    • @zszs100
      @zszs100 Před 4 lety +13

      Hong Kong is also ranked the 3rd in the world in terms of freedom while the US ranks 17th, despite all the accusations of the CCP taking Hong Kong's freedom away from them. In fact, these rioters are the real ones taking freedom away from Hong Kong and destroying the city. :)

    • @brianwong6195
      @brianwong6195 Před 4 lety +17

      Nice play on words. But if you really think this, you are pretty ignorant of whats going on in Hong Kong.

  • @bdr1414TV
    @bdr1414TV Před 4 lety +1156

    " Mecca the name that is used to describe everything except Mecca " - Hasan Minhaj XD

    • @tales9476
      @tales9476 Před 4 lety +26

      I for one, like to imagine he said the "Mecha" of asia. ;)

    • @silverhusky7993
      @silverhusky7993 Před 4 lety +44

      @MR. X Google 'Hajj'

    • @Inquiring
      @Inquiring Před 4 lety +9

      MR. X 3rd tallest building is located there.

    • @silverhusky7993
      @silverhusky7993 Před 4 lety +56

      @MR. X You've asked why it so important, there you go.
      The amount of visitors is staggering to look at, thus people use Mecca as a way to describe a place people flock to.

    • @genjiserizawa9176
      @genjiserizawa9176 Před 4 lety +52

      @MR. X we don't worship those black cube😅

  • @EconomicsExplained
    @EconomicsExplained  Před 4 lety +669

    I am already scared of this comment section
    *Hides in bunker...

  • @rasmussuonio3014
    @rasmussuonio3014 Před 4 lety +408

    "This is Hong Kong. A semi-democratic..."
    Semi-under-control-of-China might be the right words to use

    • @drunkensailor3736
      @drunkensailor3736 Před 4 lety +19

      Its rough because the protesters are kind of in a catch 22 between protesting and hurting the economy or keeping the economy going but letting China takeover. Found a great video that analyses this, the future of Hong Kong and US-China tensions: czcams.com/video/uMm67LHxR7M/video.html
      czcams.com/video/uMm67LHxR7M/video.html

    • @yanDeriction
      @yanDeriction Před 4 lety +3

      glass half full

    • @nulnoh219
      @nulnoh219 Před 4 lety +17

      You go find out about how voting is done in Hk. It's not democratic at all. It's more like the City of London.

    • @michaelemonds
      @michaelemonds Před 4 lety +21

      Hong Kong was a British colony to facilitate the British opium trade, it has never been a democracy.

    • @krinkovakwarfare
      @krinkovakwarfare Před 4 lety +7

      Well it doesn't help that Hong Kong is basically run as a corporation like what Economics Explained said plus you would hardly call its colonial past of a foreign empire or a city incorporated into a feudal dynasty as democracy either

  • @Enoch916
    @Enoch916 Před 4 lety +133

    Grew up in HK and now live in the UK, just want to add a few things here.
    1. HK Government has nearly no debt. Around 2-3 years ago, HK government owned 1 Trillion US dollar of foreign reserve at the highest point, which is 1/3 of entire Chinese reserve. I'm not sure about today's figure, only know it's lower
    2. You keep saying it's special economic zone, while it's true, irl it works more like a client state of China. E.g. member of WTO, WHO, own Olympic team, border check between HK and China, HKers cannot join Chinese military, HKers even have their own passport and most of the people don't identify as Chinese
    3. To China, Shanghai is THE onshore financial centre, HK is offshore. Both are irreplaceable to China (70-80% of foreign investment to China come from HK)
    4. HK may be good on the numbers even compared with Nordic countries, but it's a living hellhole in reality
    5. the US just cancelled HK special status, it may or may not be able to continue to attract foreign investment. We'll see
    Edit: According to wiki, HK currently has 442 billion US dollar of reserve, 8th in the world, more than UK and Germany combined

    • @Thalanna
      @Thalanna Před 4 lety +19

      Yes, this channel makes interesting videos, except when you dig more into the topic. Then you realize a lot of details have been forgotten and a lot was seen under a very neo-classical magnifying glass :(

    • @sausagejockyGaming
      @sausagejockyGaming Před 4 lety +10

      Hey, what do you think about the UK's offer to give citizenship to 3 million hong kongers? do you think any would actually move to the UK if china assumed full control over hong kong like they are trying?

    • @SirValiantKnight
      @SirValiantKnight Před 4 lety +9

      Very good analysis. Let me add some more just to show how much China is dependent on HK.
      HK is the fourth biggest importer of chinese goods after USA, EU, and ASEAN. How much can a population of only 7.5 million import that it can compare with those places with hundreds of millions each? The answer is tht HK is a free trade zone with the lowest tariffs in the world so Chinese manufacturers send their goods to HK to ship to the rest of the world to avoid tariffs.
      Next, Sensitive technology quotas exist for china but not for HK, once again because it is a free trade zone. So a lot of high technology that china needs is gained through Hong Kong.

    • @vinniechan
      @vinniechan Před 4 lety +1

      @@sausagejockyGaming they are not offering citizenship yet

    • @Enoch916
      @Enoch916 Před 4 lety +10

      @@sausagejockyGaming those 3 million are already having a career in HK and are in mid-age middle class already which made them hard to just give up everything they worked for and move. I'll think at most 1 million (still a lot...)
      most importantly, the 3 million we are talking is at least 23 years old. Anyone younger than that can't move and they're the one contributing to the HK democracy movement the most.

  • @cyrilzaldevar1817
    @cyrilzaldevar1817 Před 4 lety +66

    It's almost 1am here in the Philippines, I was about to sleep, but when I saw you release another video, I get energized

    • @EconomicsExplained
      @EconomicsExplained  Před 4 lety +21

      haha 2:50 here in Sydney, sorry for the upload slightly behind schedule.

    • @cyrilzaldevar1817
      @cyrilzaldevar1817 Před 4 lety +7

      @@EconomicsExplained HAHAHA, btw your videos about Economics are the best, really simple (well for me) and very informative 👍

    • @livethefuture2492
      @livethefuture2492 Před 4 lety +1

      Random question, why is Japan sunrise land when Australia and New Zealand get up earlier?

    • @guybreak2684
      @guybreak2684 Před 4 lety

      @@livethefuture2492 i guess its in the name "land of the rising sun" though like you said they wake later than most.

    • @Peizxcv
      @Peizxcv Před 4 lety

      When Japan got that nickname Japan was the east-most land China is aware of

  • @bailisinha6412
    @bailisinha6412 Před 4 lety +179

    18:01 Puts "Hong Hong" instead of "Hong Kong"

  • @Gussy_gussy
    @Gussy_gussy Před 4 lety +231

    As a Hong Konger I really appreciate this deep dive and explanation of the importance of HK. I am proud of my city however the people are undoubtedly suffering under the real estate problem and a government who doesn’t care about its people’s well-being but only that sweet sweet cash. Hongkongers are fighting for their freedom and rights instead of economic prosperity and I think that is really inspiring and honourable in a sense

    • @AlecMuller
      @AlecMuller Před 4 lety +4

      Couldn't agree more. Best of luck to you!

    • @shrin210
      @shrin210 Před 4 lety

      Can you use CZcams, Facebook in Hong Kong??

    • @samuelmora1327
      @samuelmora1327 Před 4 lety +15

      @@shrin210 Yes, Hong Kong is free to use the internet unlike other areas.

    • @leonesperanza3672
      @leonesperanza3672 Před 4 lety +3

      God pls help the people of HK🙏

    • @sugarsweethoney3078
      @sugarsweethoney3078 Před 3 lety +8

      Several HK Chief executives have tried to implement housing policies to build more houses but the opposition parties were against it and got people to protest because they were afraid that by building more houses the value of their existing property would drop hence the policy were dropped as the opposition wouldn't support it so it is not the govt. that didn't care. It is the selfish people, the rich who already owned property coupled with the opposition whose only aim is to go against the govt. in absolutely everything for their own selfish agenda. This is the problem with the so called democratic system the world over. U essentially have 2 parties fighting each other just for the sake of it and nothing gets done, wasting, time, money and resources causing wars and conflict.
      HK is ranked 1st in the world for economic freedom and 3rd in the world for overall freedom according to the human freedom index. America is ranked 17th so HK already has more freedom than practically almost anywhere else in the world. It is dishonest to say HK is fighting for freedom. There is nothing in the 5 demand of those rioters which mention anything about the housing problem. At the same time they run amok damaging and destroying HK. Smashing up and destroying the MTR and other public infrastructure. Harassing, beating, burning and killing people. If you want more and better housing then enable the govt. to build more houses. Not voting against it then go on riots and destroy what u already have.

  • @kigas24
    @kigas24 Před 4 lety +130

    As Beijing continues its grip on Hong Kong, the title of Asia's Financial Capital will go, in my opinion, to Singapore. All the pros of doing business in Hong Kong are going away, quickly.

    • @Alex-it8qo
      @Alex-it8qo Před 4 lety +12

      Completely agree Singapore is going to the be the new Financial Capital.

    • @Peizxcv
      @Peizxcv Před 4 lety +19

      Singapore and Shanghai. Singapore will expend its roll as SEA's financial capital and Shanghai is always China's financial capital. Then again, China's economy will be so big it can have multiple financial capitals like the US have New York and Chicago

    • @richardwills-woodward5340
      @richardwills-woodward5340 Před 3 lety +11

      @@Peizxcv China will have national financial capitals, not global financial capitals...for reasons that must be obvious.

    • @Peizxcv
      @Peizxcv Před 3 lety +1

      @@richardwills-woodward5340 They are the same thing for country with GDP as big as China’s

    • @richardwills-woodward5340
      @richardwills-woodward5340 Před 3 lety +14

      @@Peizxcv No, they're not. It has nothing to do with size of GDP, but with open economies (China is not), with advanced regulation related to global financial market requirements (China doesn't and is high risk), with open market place for all types of companies to list from around the globe (not just corrupt multi-national banks and every companies for instance), with a sophisticated set of financial and professional services products (China will never allow this), with non-state backed competition with a fair market place for entrepreneurs (China doesn't provide this and now will seize nearly 50% of all companies in China over a certain size). The list goes on. China is hostile state, no matter its size. It is not an open market and no company can operate there without heavy restrictions to trade and on the lives of those that work for them. That will never offer a global financial centre that democratic and free countries can operate in. What China is doing is creating a two tier world. It may be a global financial centre for dictatorships - that is entirely possible, but not for the globe like London or New York (whom are complimentary rather than competing.)

  • @sch-corp
    @sch-corp Před 4 lety +19

    One thing that many people seem to gloss over (this video included) is the strength of the Hong Kong legal system, built on the foundations of the UK common law system. It is the strength of its legal systems that give investors the courage to invest money into China through Hong Kong.

    • @bananaboy1026
      @bananaboy1026 Před rokem +2

      As an aspiring law student who has had countless classmates tell me that the legal industry in hk is failing and I should consider leaving, this is an assuring comment 😄 I’ve spoke to numerous solicitors and barristers in financial litigation and they tell me practicing in hk is still the way to go

    • @nsshing
      @nsshing Před 7 měsíci

      And it's gone. We are ruled by man.

    • @nukiolbartes6279
      @nukiolbartes6279 Před 6 měsíci

      How is legal system strength measured or what does it even mean to have strong legal system?

  • @jackopiyo8902
    @jackopiyo8902 Před 4 lety +70

    Hi man, I hated all things business until I came across your channel and fell for economics. may not be able to support now but most def will

    • @EconomicsExplained
      @EconomicsExplained  Před 4 lety +30

      No worries mate, another person interested in understanding the world of finance and economics is more than good enough for us :)

    • @allamasadi7970
      @allamasadi7970 Před 4 lety +4

      Economic and finance is now the hottest and most entertaining niche on CZcams now

  • @cklee612
    @cklee612 Před 4 lety +48

    Being a HKer, I'd say that the industries we have are quite limited and the government does not show any sign of incentivising scientific research such as agriculture and the production of drinkable water which are the achilles' heels of HK.The dependence on China also severely restricts the influence of HK which I'd argue is a political move.

    • @taro7145
      @taro7145 Před 9 měsíci +3

      It doesn’t have ample land why would it has a thriving agricultural research lol these kind of research only thrive in big places like Queensland where the agricultural research is world class

  • @EconomicsExplained
    @EconomicsExplained  Před 4 lety +47

    Thanks as always for watching :D This video was requested by the team over on Patreon. If you want to have your say on what video is produced next please consider supporting the channel.
    www.patreon.com/EconomicsExplained

    • @Queleb1
      @Queleb1 Před 4 lety +1

      Best part of my day is your uploads!

    • @gamesxx-fc6yo
      @gamesxx-fc6yo Před 4 lety +1

      EE:"Hong Kong has switched hands many times in its history"
      Poland, Egypt, Middle East, Alsace-Lorain, Crimea, Turkey, Ireland, India, Gibraltar, Finland, Latam: Am I a Joke to you?

    • @GabrielFerreira-ue8hs
      @GabrielFerreira-ue8hs Před 4 lety

      Amazing Episode, We would like to hear your take about Chile's economy. Keep up with the great job!

    • @axl1002
      @axl1002 Před 4 lety

      Talking about HK, showing Shanghai skyscrapers :P

    • @jaiparwani4279
      @jaiparwani4279 Před 4 lety

      Not remarkable then 7/10. Come on be objective

  • @macdom24
    @macdom24 Před 4 lety +391

    "The UK is the center of EU finance"
    Brexit has entered the chat

    • @respectedgentleman4322
      @respectedgentleman4322 Před 4 lety +70

      He said Europe not EU. UK will still be in Europe after this is over.

    • @macdom24
      @macdom24 Před 4 lety +44

      @@respectedgentleman4322 Yes but the question is if Europe will still use the UK for finances if there is a hard trade barrier.

    • @Joker-yw9hl
      @Joker-yw9hl Před 4 lety +12

      The capital flight to London and Wall Street this decade is going to be staggering

    • @ZontarDow
      @ZontarDow Před 4 lety +30

      @@macdom24 London was the financial capital of Europe before it joined the EU, and there really isn't any alternative. Frankfurt is often cited as the go to alternative, but it physically cannot handle the influx from London.

    • @seadkolasinac7220
      @seadkolasinac7220 Před 4 lety +8

      Zontar genuinely curious, why couldn’t Frankfurt handle the influx from London? Given that - to my knowledge - there are only around 300K people who work in the City of London

  • @paulstorm1009
    @paulstorm1009 Před 4 lety +10

    It's wonderful you gave Hong Kong an 8.8 because in Cantonese eight is a homonym for a phrase meaning "get rich" and as such 8 is seen as lucky number in Hong Kong (and the rest of China) and is associated with wealth.

  • @armchairwomanmao2922
    @armchairwomanmao2922 Před 4 lety +5

    Thanks so much fellow Aussie for sending my mother city MUCH LOVE ! KEEP THE HKD GOING FOR ETERNITY! ❤️❤️❤️💪💪💪

  • @pushups4ukraine278
    @pushups4ukraine278 Před 2 lety +5

    Many things in this video do not stand well with even a little bit of time. For those of you curious, late June and early July 2020 saw Hong Kong fall almost entirely into the direct control of the Chinese government. In terms of basic human rights, this is uniquely bad.

  • @firstnamecorrectlylastname713

    Past: Housing is expensive.
    Present: Cell room is unaffordable!

  • @wesk7346
    @wesk7346 Před 3 lety +13

    Great video! Would be cool to see an episode on Macau - HK's closest former colony neighbor - and compare and contrast the two economies, e.g. Macau's wealth has enabled them to pay its residents monthly stipends.

  • @ben5056
    @ben5056 Před 4 lety +15

    Companies like Lukin Coffee have shown that even if a Chinese company is listed in a reputable stock exchange there is no guarantee of the transparency that investors expect

  • @inexplicable01
    @inexplicable01 Před 4 lety +46

    I grew up in HK and living in the states now. I love Hong Kong despite its many flaws. I believe in the tenacity of Hong Kong people. Hong Kong people are one of the hardest working people in the world. They will find a way I'm sure.

    • @noahpolicarpio1530
      @noahpolicarpio1530 Před 4 lety

      What made you move to the States?

    • @inexplicable01
      @inexplicable01 Před 4 lety +5

      @@noahpolicarpio1530 it really wasnt my decision. My parents moved when i was 15. I am too used to the open spaces now so its hard for me to move back. But i have many fond memories.

    • @999bigsky
      @999bigsky Před 3 lety

      @@inexplicable01 where do you live in the states now? If you don’t mind my asking. Thanks.

    • @pbc5137
      @pbc5137 Před 3 lety +1

      @@inexplicable01 So you wouldnt want to move back to congested HK. Says it all.

    • @leealex24
      @leealex24 Před 2 lety +1

      @@inexplicable01 Yeah, making money is good in HK but, comes at the expense of sanity and life.

  • @GeoPol01
    @GeoPol01 Před 4 lety +47

    4:22 oh yes Goldman Sachs is quite “respected”

  • @theoheinrich529
    @theoheinrich529 Před 4 lety +11

    Thank you for your services Economics Explained.

  • @taurentsiuz9206
    @taurentsiuz9206 Před 4 lety +37

    "but this prosperity is now under threat" and after that unskipable add of huawei pops up.......
    Intresting

  • @davidmellings6997
    @davidmellings6997 Před 4 lety +51

    I find it hilarious that every video on the commonwealth nations has a title like 'the unstoppable economy of...' apart from the UK which is just described as 'unremarkable'

  • @eliahualazrachi6540
    @eliahualazrachi6540 Před 4 lety +201

    The economy of Israel please

  • @MelancholyCrypto
    @MelancholyCrypto Před 4 lety +10

    Thank you so much, you upload the best content on all of youtube.

  • @slop123456789
    @slop123456789 Před 4 lety +136

    "9/10 for Stability & Confidence"
    You sound like a used car salesman mate.

    • @r0n1n-
      @r0n1n- Před 3 lety +7

      You can fit so many billionares in this bad boy.

    • @sergeigen1
      @sergeigen1 Před 3 lety +9

      how can you give HK a 9/10 in stability when they have all those riots and the chinese army arresting and dissapearing people

    • @budgetgaming6938
      @budgetgaming6938 Před 3 lety +5

      I guess it’s about economy not social distress

    • @xandercorp6175
      @xandercorp6175 Před 3 lety +5

      @@budgetgaming6938 At least someone knows what channel they're on. Well done! Some people are so unaware.

    • @grandwat1290
      @grandwat1290 Před 3 lety +2

      @@xandercorp6175 yes but riots and social unrest can hurt the economy.

  • @jeremyarmand9348
    @jeremyarmand9348 Před 4 lety +19

    Great video, really enjoyed it! A small video detail nitpick: at 9:43 you mention protests, but show video of what actually looks like a large groups of SE Asians maids relaxing in a mall on their day off. Thought that was funny

    • @charlesmadre5568
      @charlesmadre5568 Před 4 lety +5

      They were actually relaxing on the open ground floor of the HSBC building.

    • @meganjames8572
      @meganjames8572 Před 4 lety +3

      Jeremy Armand - yes, you are correct. At 9:43 the people shown are domestic helpers/workers who use the public space under the HSBC building at 1 Queens Road, Central each Sunday to socialise, picnic, etc. They are mostly from the Philippines so there is a lot of Tagalog spoken here. It’s a lovely, peaceful environment each Sunday, definitely not protesting or occupying. (We worked in the building for many years.)

    • @lf00t
      @lf00t Před 4 lety +2

      noticed that too, haha

    • @jeremyarmand9348
      @jeremyarmand9348 Před 4 lety

      Charles Madre I couldn’t tell the exact location, thanks!

  • @Zei33
    @Zei33 Před 4 lety +2

    This was a truly incredible video. You’re so insightful. I’ve never thought that deeply about some of those questions.

  • @superstudlyhunk
    @superstudlyhunk Před 3 lety +2

    16:25 talks about Hong Kong
    *shows Suzhou in the background*

  • @alandchan4540
    @alandchan4540 Před 4 lety +36

    Nice video, though I would argue that the problem with Hong Kong is not its protests, but the government decisions that led to the protests. As this channel stressed over and over again, stability and confidence is key in developing an economy. Hong Kong is a financial centre not only because it attracts Chinese companies, in fact, Hong Kong was already doing great before Chinese companies swamped the Hong Kong stock exchange. Hong Kong succeeded because it upheld the rule of law and provided a level playing field for all businesses. Businesses trusted Hong Kong with their money. The Extradition Bill pushed forward by the government last year and the National Security legislation being implemented now completely shatters the confidence businesses have on the city. Both bills would allow the Chinese government to prosecute people using mainland Chinese laws, which means that Hong Kong no longer provides a safe space for businesses, and anyone who speaks out against the government, even on non-political issues such as making a negative stock market prediction or uncover financial fraud, might face arrests. If Hong Kong loses its independent judiciary, there is no way Hong Kong could continue to be a reputable financial center, no way at all. So, in fact, protesters are not the threat to Hong Kong's economy, China is.

  • @alexleung7127
    @alexleung7127 Před 3 lety +3

    Pretty sure Hong kong is no longer the same. As I am from Hong kong myself

  • @hsinava
    @hsinava Před 4 lety +1

    Wanted to tell you I really enjoy your videos. I attend a top b school, ranked ~30 in the FT rankings. Your content is far more engaging than the lectures I've paid big money for.

  • @MillionZAR
    @MillionZAR Před 4 lety +1

    This is the best channel I have been subscribed to..keeps me globally updated wrt economics

  • @evalpenguin8797
    @evalpenguin8797 Před 4 lety +275

    "Unstoppable Economy"
    communists: allow us to introduce ourselves

    • @kevinchen9677
      @kevinchen9677 Před 4 lety +48

      Hong Kong was unstoppable b/c it was the gateway for 1.3 billion Chinese to access to Western Products for decades. Don't bite the hand who fatten Hong Kong. Joshua Wong petition USA Congress to sanction Hong Kong last time I check.
      Pre-Sanction Hong Kong: "Unstoppable Economy"
      Post-Sanction Hong Kong: "Can't Breathe"

    • @Valencetheshireman927
      @Valencetheshireman927 Před 4 lety +7

      Joshua Wong wants freedom for Hong Kong

    • @drunkensailor3736
      @drunkensailor3736 Před 4 lety +3

      The current situation in Hong Kong is putting its economic weight at risk. The protesters are kind of in a catch 22 between protesting and the economy. Found a great video that analyses this, the future of Hong Kong and US-China tensions: czcams.com/video/uMm67LHxR7M/video.html
      czcams.com/video/uMm67LHxR7M/video.html

    • @Enoch916
      @Enoch916 Před 4 lety +26

      @@kevinchen9677 What's the point of having an "unstoppable economy" if basic human rights are lost?

    • @danielyebra1147
      @danielyebra1147 Před 4 lety +12

      @Wooddog Shiba Inu watching porn on the internet

  • @AbdulGoodLooks
    @AbdulGoodLooks Před 4 lety +49

    Last time i was this early Hong Kong was a British Colony

    • @jaiparwani4279
      @jaiparwani4279 Před 4 lety +4

      And it was still called Hong Kong 18:00

    • @matpk
      @matpk Před 4 lety +2

      Semi Democratic description is OUTDATED. Today it's more like Vichy Hong Kong with Nazi China up North.
      👀👀👁 need to choose whether go down as Churchill or useless Chamberlain when facing #Chinazi.

  • @BusinessMadhouse
    @BusinessMadhouse Před 4 lety +29

    Excited for your video! They're so well made and insightful.
    Your work is awesome and inspired me to start my own channel

  • @hanz4409
    @hanz4409 Před 4 lety

    The final thoughts are great. Thank you for making this insightful video.

  • @InvestorCenter
    @InvestorCenter Před 4 lety +15

    As Asia continues to grow, I can see Hong Kong challenging New York as the financial center of the world.

    • @dxelson
      @dxelson Před 4 lety +11

      Biggest joke of the century!

    • @kj6150
      @kj6150 Před 4 lety +8

      Not if the CCP gets involved

    • @DarkshadowXD63
      @DarkshadowXD63 Před 4 lety +1

      @@kj6150 If the CCP does get involved it could replace Shanghai but I highly doubt it the citizen's wouldn't allow it

    • @artman7780
      @artman7780 Před 4 lety +1

      Singapore seems better. There could other competitors for being the future financial center: Shanghai, Dubai, Bangkok and Mumbai.

    • @jilover2
      @jilover2 Před 4 lety

      @@dxelson not a joke. It already did. The HK stock exchange raised the most capital through IPO in 2019, beating Nasdaq. But given the recent instability, we will have to see if foreign capital will stay.

  • @mrmeseeks8790
    @mrmeseeks8790 Před 4 lety +69

    EE: Honkong is a country.
    China:So you have chosen reeducation camp?

    • @ailo8964
      @ailo8964 Před 2 lety +1

      And you could also be a Uyghur.

  • @jason2182
    @jason2182 Před 4 lety +1

    Loved all the beautiful footage of Hong Kong 💖

  • @davisoaresalves5179
    @davisoaresalves5179 Před 4 lety

    You are slowly becoming the best economics channel on youtube.

  • @kosakos1999
    @kosakos1999 Před 3 lety +10

    For government debt in Hong Kong, you can thank our former Financial Secretary, John Tsang. He is extremely fiscally conservative, drawing criticism from both pro-Beijing socialists and pro-democracy lawmakers due to his unwillingness to spend money on social programs. At the time of his retirement, the government treasury was stockpiled with loads of reserves. It is thank to him that Hong Kong manage to stay afloat during these 2 years of protests, riots, Chinese encroachment, pandemics, and reckless government spending.
    BTW, the government managed to use up half of the reserves during these 2 years, and it took more than 4 years to accumulate that much.

  • @theethicsofliberty4642
    @theethicsofliberty4642 Před 4 lety +63

    17:51 - ??? " Hong Hong " ???

    • @EconomicsExplained
      @EconomicsExplained  Před 4 lety +47

      hahahaha, oh boi.. this is why you don't edit your video's at 2am in the morning. Throw it in the mistakes of 2020 video...

    • @reesehendricksen1871
      @reesehendricksen1871 Před 4 lety +6

      They did give it an asterisk, so technically they are still fine

  • @wouterhazenberg2832
    @wouterhazenberg2832 Před 4 lety

    Well done on the background music! Adds some tension and keeps the attention on a 20min vid.

  • @Steveleecomedy
    @Steveleecomedy Před 4 lety +22

    I'm from Hong Kong and this is 1 of the most accurate non-partisan video about the nature of Hong Kong and the region done by an outsider. Political ideology like "The west" or the evil Communist are always just a gimmick. At the end it's all about the money and making sure the ruling class is in power.

    • @finnleason6916
      @finnleason6916 Před 4 lety +7

      Good to know. "At the end it's all about the money and making sure the ruling class is in power" - well put.

    • @Steveleecomedy
      @Steveleecomedy Před 4 lety +7

      I should add so call fighting for freedom or fighting western Imperialist are just the struggle between the powerfuls who can get what more. And the little guys always pay for it. Growing up in Hong Kong under the British and the Chinese I can't say they've no different relatively speaking but helps me to understand they're just different masters.

    • @byronlance6270
      @byronlance6270 Před 4 lety

      香港加油! #海外廣府唐人

  • @mistrants2745
    @mistrants2745 Před 4 lety +6

    Youve started doing ratings for countries, which i find absolutely awesome. However, i do hope you will go back to the videos on countries youve already done to maybe add a score to them as well?

  • @JadeTrading
    @JadeTrading Před 4 lety +47

    When I traveled a lot of things in Hong Kong were quite expensive :/

    • @EconomicsExplained
      @EconomicsExplained  Před 4 lety +12

      It's a very expensive city for sure.

    • @mjholmes69
      @mjholmes69 Před 4 lety +12

      Hong Kong is a unique place where you can spend widely from a few dollars a meal to a few thousand. The income disparity is if not the highest in the world at least one of the highest.

  • @dayviduh
    @dayviduh Před 4 lety

    Loving this rapid release of videos. Keeps me unbored

  • @cwazyazn
    @cwazyazn Před 4 lety

    Came from business casual. Just subbed, this channel is awesome.

  • @aliyatsabitadaffamutaqin9682

    New York, Hongkong, and London, the bedrock of the economy, and also the bedrock of protection from Dormammu
    coincidence?

    • @stevegriffey8255
      @stevegriffey8255 Před 3 lety

      @@user-td8if4fb1v There’s more financial institutions in HK than any other city... All of the western banks and eastern banks are located here.

  • @donnysamuel740
    @donnysamuel740 Před 4 lety +17

    The economy of the yakuza or the triad please :)

  • @marcusaureliusregulus2833

    I always wondered why Hong Kong was so important and could sustain such high real estate prices. Thanks for the video. Brilliants explanation

  • @ajsphinx
    @ajsphinx Před 4 lety

    Thanks to the patreon who made this possible.

  • @KageNoTenshi
    @KageNoTenshi Před 2 lety +2

    a little correction, the government has actually tried on numerous occasions to roll out large housing schemes, however, each Cheif executive that tried was met with huge riots,
    1. because that negatively impacts the housing market prices, which means any homeowner has just seen their overall assets going down, as well as
    2. the most powerful people in the city, the people who actually run the city instead of the government, the large corporations who own all the lands don't want the land to go down in valve, thus they incite people to stand against the government
    like clockwork, every CE who put out some kinda housing scheme to drastically increase the housing supply are faced with large scale riots and protests, and the only CE ever who did NOT receive ANY large scale protest against, is the one who lifted the rental control, meaning now the house owner or landowners can now double triple or quadruple their asking price for rent, and there is now no law against it, and the housing prices skyrocket right after that.

  • @andro7862
    @andro7862 Před 4 lety +7

    My therapist: Hong Hong doesn't exist, he can't hurt you!
    *Hong Hong* : 18:00

  • @mreman007
    @mreman007 Před 4 lety

    Loved this video, thank you 🙏

  • @idontcarefuku
    @idontcarefuku Před 4 lety

    Beautiful begining and interesting as per usual

  • @noahpolicarpio1530
    @noahpolicarpio1530 Před 4 lety +3

    I love this channel. You guys single-handedly made me interested in Economics.
    I would change your score a bit, though. Stability might need to be down 1 or 2 notches because of the protests going on.
    Industry may also need to be 1 or 2 notches down because of over-reliance with Finance and Tourism. They had the chance to diversify in tech but didn't choose to. Shenzhen did that and exceeded HK's GDP in 2018.
    Still, I enjoyed your video, Economics Explained.

  • @akinbodeog
    @akinbodeog Před 4 lety +22

    It's weird that you didn't mention the people in "cage homes" while working out your final ranking.

    • @HaydenLau.
      @HaydenLau. Před 3 lety +4

      How many people out of 7 million do you think live in cage homes? It's 50,000. Which is less than 0.8% of the population.

    • @kdegraa
      @kdegraa Před 3 lety +4

      Cage homes are not common in Hong Kong. Thinking they are is like thinking everyone in Australia has a pet kangaroo.

  • @isaacshank1036
    @isaacshank1036 Před rokem +1

    A really informative video; I do have some takeaways while watching even as a Hong Konger, thank you.

  • @Je.rone_
    @Je.rone_ Před 4 lety +1

    Another great vid

  • @br4252
    @br4252 Před 4 lety +21

    The term “semi democratic” in your intro seems very stretched given recent events.

    • @octaneblue6
      @octaneblue6 Před 4 lety +2

      He's made his allegiance quite clear. He will kow-tow to China until the end of time.

    • @gilsonrogeriolimaoliveira2807
      @gilsonrogeriolimaoliveira2807 Před 4 lety +3

      @@octaneblue6 only people stuck in the past still don't see the writing in the wall. The world belongs to China from now on. As a Latin American I welcome the new world boss, all the poverty and violence here was caused by the policies of Uncle Sam.

    • @octaneblue6
      @octaneblue6 Před 4 lety +1

      @@hgos7211 The government arresting you for speaking out against it doees.

    • @bobjones2959
      @bobjones2959 Před 3 lety +2

      @@octaneblue6 He's pretty clearly neutral and often inserts slight jabs at China in his scripts. This "if you aren't explicitly with me, then you are against me" nonsense doesn't help anyone.

  • @lityne5577
    @lityne5577 Před 4 lety +5

    if that many people are living in practically impoverished conditions, then I don't think there is prosperity.

    • @lityne5577
      @lityne5577 Před 3 lety +1

      @anon2k10 the fact that you conflate communism with people not being horrendously improvised and living in cages means capitalism is the source of such things, and thus you make it so I don't even really need to respond

  • @lukamatic8588
    @lukamatic8588 Před 4 lety +1

    I would suggest making a video about ranking countries that already had their videos.

  • @dejected107
    @dejected107 Před 4 lety

    Would love to see more economic videos on city profiles like this

  • @RAS_Squints
    @RAS_Squints Před 4 lety +4

    Last time I was this early, Hong Kong was the land of billionaires

  • @davidlangley9287
    @davidlangley9287 Před 4 lety +8

    HK looks promising but the average young people don't want to live in HK anymore...

  • @peterRod
    @peterRod Před 3 lety +2

    Speaking of Hong Kong and their economy and not speaking of the conditions of the the Filipino woman maid workers , which is almost slavery for pennies; it's quite disturbing

  • @yashgulave8366
    @yashgulave8366 Před rokem

    Bro, when you mentioned Business Casual, it almost brought tears to eyes because of the nostalgia. I used to watch every single video made by them. 😭
    I hope they can start posting videos on their channel again. Or atleast start a new channel and upload videos there.

  • @pickleproductions2010
    @pickleproductions2010 Před 4 lety +3

    can you rank some of the economies you covered previously like USA or china?

  • @killianlucas
    @killianlucas Před 4 lety +20

    I don’t think HK is a Special Economic Zone? weren’t SEZs like China‘s way of emulating Hong Hong (17:52) ?

    • @coolshanth94
      @coolshanth94 Před 4 lety +16

      Yeah, Hong Kong is a special administrative region. Special economic zones in mainland China only have less business regulations, trade restrictions and taxes. HK has an independent judiciary based on UK common law, distinct immigration policy, its own freely traded currency pegged to USD, much greater freedom of speech and internet, own Olympics team, and is a distinct WTO member.

    • @samlsd9711
      @samlsd9711 Před 4 lety

      Those kind of youtubes get paid by the government or somebody who wants to fool people into thinking the false information is right.
      If you have 450k per average, why are you struggling to make ends meet? This channel is paid by probably by Chinese communist government.
      If the young people are protesting and struggling for a bread, all this documentary is false.

    • @wuqinghui8199
      @wuqinghui8199 Před 4 lety +5

      Sam LSD if you take into account the crazy cost of living in the city, it makes perfect sense, the housing in Hong Kong for example cost arnd ten thousand usd per square meter at least, and on average around 20k usd per square meter. The rich poor GAP is growing larger and larger by day as well, you have millionaires who can literally afford anything they can possibly want and minimum wage workers who are living paycheck to paycheck.

  • @Matt-om1ul
    @Matt-om1ul Před 4 lety

    “Stability and Confidence” and “Growth” have both been labeled #4 for the scoring rubric in the past few economy vids.

  • @projimbo
    @projimbo Před 2 lety +1

    Interesting to revisit this a year later.

  • @miran2215
    @miran2215 Před 4 lety +7

    Hey EE can you make a video on the economics of China's planned mega city clusters which plans to rival Tokyo bay area, New York tristate area and san Francisco bay. It sounds like a good idea

  • @dickhertz6405
    @dickhertz6405 Před 4 lety +39

    Could you do a video on the “Celtic Tiger” of Ireland?

    • @biledemon85
      @biledemon85 Před 4 lety +9

      He'll need about 3 warm-up episodes on the problems with the Eurozone first to make sense of it :P

    • @ddandymann
      @ddandymann Před 4 lety +2

      No corporation tax.

    • @drunkensailor3736
      @drunkensailor3736 Před 4 lety

      Didn't Visual Politik do something similar?

    • @mrsnoop1820
      @mrsnoop1820 Před 4 lety

      @Aroxar Monaco is one

    • @andro7862
      @andro7862 Před 4 lety

      @Aroxar Europe as a continent had 6 tigers: Iceland, Ireland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia.

  • @BW-fe8dq
    @BW-fe8dq Před 2 lety +2

    In retrospect, that 9/10 stability and confidence rating really should have been lower.

  • @tonykesserwany682
    @tonykesserwany682 Před 4 lety

    Awesome content as always! Would you do a Lebanon episode?

  • @crapp0
    @crapp0 Před 4 lety +3

    9:50 Those are filipino domestic workers having a picnic. They have the same type of gathering in singapore as well.

  • @poonling456
    @poonling456 Před 4 lety +106

    EE: The Unstoppable Economy of Hong Kong
    China Communist Party: i'm about to end this man's whole career

    • @EconomicsExplained
      @EconomicsExplained  Před 4 lety +27

      ahh man, why you gotta be like this?

    • @lukecarroll4080
      @lukecarroll4080 Před 4 lety +10

      @UCHYnHz9vjnpO4JucMIVEO3Q theyre not even communist anymore, they have brought 1 billion out of poverty including hong kong

    • @Valencetheshireman927
      @Valencetheshireman927 Před 4 lety +18

      @Luke-Technically yes but they are still ruled by the Chinese COMMUNIST party

    • @redchan2571
      @redchan2571 Před 4 lety +27

      @@Valencetheshireman927 Just as the Democratic People's Republic of Korea is a democracy, very good logic indeed.

    • @marcowong7
      @marcowong7 Před 4 lety +23

      @@lukecarroll4080 umm... so factually, Hong Kong brought China out of poverty, not the other way around.

  • @user-hy6cp6xp9f
    @user-hy6cp6xp9f Před 4 lety

    Love your videos as usual man! Think you could look at CDOs and CLOs later on?

  • @SebOutdoors
    @SebOutdoors Před 4 lety

    This was, as per usual, great and very insightful! I'd like to see HK compared to Singapore, would this be possible at one point?

  • @andriizahorulko7263
    @andriizahorulko7263 Před 4 lety +8

    "China national offshore company". This made me search it on the internet.

  • @m_k3114
    @m_k3114 Před 4 lety +39

    Do Ireland next I live there and even I don’t know how we got so rich

    • @EconomicsExplained
      @EconomicsExplained  Před 4 lety +16

      hahaha it is on the list for sure :)

    • @livethefuture2492
      @livethefuture2492 Před 4 lety +6

      Weren't you guys like starving a century ago? Something about potatoes...

    • @drunkensailor3736
      @drunkensailor3736 Před 4 lety

      I think Visual Politik did a video on this already

    • @m_k3114
      @m_k3114 Před 4 lety

      Economics Explained 😳

    • @Croydondebruyne
      @Croydondebruyne Před 4 lety +3

      Low tax country, which therefore attracts multinational companies to move there profits there to pay lower rates of corporation tax

  • @Spinfxxx
    @Spinfxxx Před 4 lety

    In love w this channel

  • @kornofilo
    @kornofilo Před 4 lety

    We are 421K subs now. Wow, and to think I was here before 10K!!!

  • @vivekgodannamboodiri1296
    @vivekgodannamboodiri1296 Před 4 lety +4

    I have been following this channel for long. Really amazing content guys. What about making a video on GDP? I mean not just the definition.but real meaning of it and other nuances? I think it would be really interesting.

  • @retosiegfried6097
    @retosiegfried6097 Před 4 lety +62

    9:43 Protestors? These are Filipina maids on their day off ^^

    • @drunkensailor3736
      @drunkensailor3736 Před 4 lety +2

      The protesters are kind of in a catch 22 between protesting and hurting the economy or keeping the economy going but letting China takeover. Found a great video that analyses this, the future of Hong Kong and US-China tensions: czcams.com/video/uMm67LHxR7M/video.html
      czcams.com/video/uMm67LHxR7M/video.html

    • @clam4597
      @clam4597 Před 4 lety +2

      Where do the maids go now with the social distancing?

    • @SH-xq9fw
      @SH-xq9fw Před 4 lety +2

      @@clam4597 They don't, we don't have social distancing in Hong Kong.

  • @igedesadhudharmapranawa4078

    Hi,
    Love the video. I keep watching your channel every morning.
    I'm from Indonesia and would love to hear about the country economic situation from your perspective, and what we can do to improve.
    I hope you get to see this and thank you for your good work 😁.

    • @heinuchung8680
      @heinuchung8680 Před 4 lety

      He has done Indonesia before . :) Also check out visualpolitik

    • @prashr4075
      @prashr4075 Před 4 lety

      Namaste from India,
      R u frm Bali??

    • @igedesadhudharmapranawa4078
      @igedesadhudharmapranawa4078 Před 4 lety

      @@heinuchung8680 I've seen the visualpolitic about Indonesia. But there are none from this channel, and I've checked. But if you have seen from this channel please send me a link. 😁

    • @igedesadhudharmapranawa4078
      @igedesadhudharmapranawa4078 Před 4 lety

      @@prashr4075 Namaste.
      yes I am. Where are you from?

  • @XxxTheGoldenApplexxX
    @XxxTheGoldenApplexxX Před 4 lety +1

    Why am I always early to your videos?

  • @Valaens
    @Valaens Před 4 lety +16

    9 stability? I would have thought something like 2.

  • @kjlovescoffee
    @kjlovescoffee Před 4 lety +5

    9:42 "The protest have frequently occupied shopping malls..."
    Shows domestic workers on their day off sitting in the shade under the HSBC building.

  • @natestroble2451
    @natestroble2451 Před 4 lety +2

    I lived in Mainland China for several years and travelled to Hong Kong a dozen times. I do have a point of correction. Hong Kong isn’t a Special economic zone like say Shanghai is on the mainland. It is an autonomous region. When you enter Hong Kong, you go through customs and must present your passport . The same is true for mainland citizens. Hong Kong is more like Taiwan’s political status. The world treats Taiwan as a separate nation while the mainland treats it as “non mainland China”.Since 97 when the British released Hong Kong back to the Mainland, It has operated functionally like its own country with Mainland control only in certain political issues. The British released Hong Kong under the condition that it would be autonomous for 50 years. All the protest are related to the mainland trying undermine this autonomy and incorporate it back into the mainland early. The real success for Hong Kong is it being the freest economy on earth up to recently. We can all take note of what happens when you have low taxes, virtually no government debt and low regulations. It should definitely release pressure on its real estate market by opening up more useable land. This is a government created issue. The is the same problem in San Francisco where they amount of useable land is restricted driving up the price land making that place to one of the most expensive real estate markets in world. Good for thought .