Mid-year population is compiled using the “resident population” approach. Population figures before 1996 were compiled
using the “extended de facto” approach. Since August 2000, the “resident population” approach has been adopted in place
of the “extended de facto approach for compiling Hong Kong population figures, with revised population figures backdated to
1996. The population estimate compiled under the “resident population” approach is referred to as the Hong Kong Resident
Population, which comprises “Usual Residents” and “Mobile Residents”. “Usual Residents” refer to two categories of people :
(a) Hong Kong Permanent Residents who have stayed in Hong Kong for at least 3 months during the 6 months before or for
at least 3 months during the 6 months after the reference time-point, regardless of whether they are in Hong Kong at the
reference time-point; and (b) Hong Kong Non-permanent Residents who are in Hong Kong at the reference time-point. As for
“Mobile Residents”, they are Hong Kong Permanent Residents who have stayed in Hong Kong for at least 1 month but less
than 3 months during the 6 months before or for at least 1 month but less than 3 months during the 6 months after the
reference time-point, regardless of whether they are in Hong Kong at the reference time-point. Under the new approach,
visitors are not part of the Hong Kong population.
Crude birth rate refers to the number of live births in a given year per 1000 mid-year population of that year.
Crude death rate refers to the number of deaths in a given year per 1000 mid-year population of that year.
Infant mortality rate refers to the number of deaths of age under one in a given year per 1000 live births in that year.
Total fertility rate refers to the average number of children that would be born alive to 1000 women during their lifetime if
they were to pass through their childbearing ages 15-49 experiencing the age specific fertility rates prevailing in a given year.
Expectation of life at birth refers to the number of years of life that a person born in a given year is expected to live if
he/she was subject to the prevalent mortality conditions as reflected by the set of age-sex specific mortality rates for that
year.
Labour force refers to the land-based non-institutional population aged 15 and over who satisfy the criteria for inclusion
in the employed population or the unemployed population.
Labour force participation rate refers to the proportion of labour force in the land-based non-institutional population
aged 15 and over.
Employed persons refer to those persons aged 15 and over who have been at work for pay or profit during the 7 days
before enumeration or have had formal job attachment. Unpaid family workers and persons who were on leave/holiday
during the 7 days before enumeration are included.
Unemployed persons refer to those persons aged 15 and over who (a) have not had a job and have not performed any
work for pay or profit during the 7 days before enumeration; (b) have been available for work during the 7 days before
enumeration; and (c) have sought work during the 30 days before enumeration. If a person aged 15 or over fulfils the
conditions (a) and (b) above but has not sought work during the 30 days before enumeration because he/she believed that
work was not available, he/she is still classified as unemployed, being regarded as a so-called “discouraged worker”.
Unemployed population also includes persons without a job who have sought work but have not been available for work
because of temporary sickness; and persons without a job who have been available for work but have not sought work
because they have made arrangements to take up a new job or to start business on a subsequent date; or were expecting to
return to their original jobs.
Unemployment rate refers to the proportion of unemployed persons in the labour force.
Monthly employment earnings refer to earnings from all jobs during the last month. For employees, they include wage
and salary, bonus, commission, tips, housing allowance, overtime allowance, attendance allowance and other cash
allowances. However, back pays are excluded. For employers and self-employed, they refer to amounts drawn from the self-
owned enterprise for personal and household use. If information on the amounts drawn for personal and household use is
not available, data on net earnings from business would be collected instead.
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is a measure of the total value of production of all resident producing units of a country
or territory in a specified period, before deducting allowance for consumption of fixed capital.
Per capita GDP is obtained by dividing total GDP in a year by the population of that country or territory in the same year.
Gross National Product (GNP) is a measure of the total income earned by residents of an economy from engaging in
various economic activities, irrespective of whether the economic activities are carried out within the economic territory or
outside. In other words, in compiling GNP, earnings of residents from various economic activities within or outside the
economic territory are included, whereas earnings of non-residents from economic activities within the economic territory are
excluded. GNP is computed by the following formula:
GNP = GDP
+ Factor income earned by residents from outside the economic territory
- Factor income earned by non-residents from within the economic territory
where factor income is mainly classified into investment income and compensation of employees. Investment income
includes direct investment income, portfolio investment income and other investment income.
Per capita GNP is obtained by dividing GNP in a year by the population of that country or territory in the same year.
Balance of Payments (BOP) account is a statistical statement that systematically summarizes, for a specific time
period, the economic transactions of an economy with the rest of the world. A complete BOP account comprises two broad
accounts: (a) Current Account; and (b) Capital and Financial Account.
Current account largely measures flow of real resources, including exports and imports of good and services, income
receivable and payable abroad, and current transfers from and to abroad.
Goods comprise all movable goods that change ownership from residents to non-residents (exports) and from non-
residents to residents (imports). Goods cover general merchandise, goods for processing, goods procured in ports by
carriers, repairs on goods, and non-monetary gold.
Services include services rendered by residents to non-residents (exports) and by non-residents to residents (imports).
Service transactions are classified by type of services, namely transportation, travel, insurance services, financial services and
other services.
Income consists of earnings by residents from non-residents (income receivable) and by non-residents from residents
(income payable) for the provision of factors of production. Income is mainly classified into compensation of employees and
investment income which includes direct investment income, portfolio investment income and other investment income.
Current transfers are those transactions in which residents of an economy provide/receive real and financial resources
that are likely to be consumed immediately or shortly, to/from non-residents without the receipt/provision of equivalent
economic values in return.
Capital account measures external transactions in capital transfers, and in acquisition or disposal of non-produced, non-
financial assets.
Financial account records transactions in financial assets and liabilities between residents and non-residents. It shows
how an economy’s external transactions are financed. Transactions in the financial account are classified into direct
investment, portfolio investment, financial derivatives, other investment and reserve assets.
Capital transfers are transfers of ownership of a fixed asset or the forgiveness of a liability without receiving any
economic value in return.
Direct investment refers to external investment in which an investor of an economy acquires a lasting interest and an
effective control over the management of an enterprise located in another economy.
Portfolio investment refers to investment in non-resident equity securities and debt securities (e.g. bonds and notes,
money market instruments). Compared with direct investors, portfolio investors in equity and debt securities of non-resident
enterprises have no lasting interest or influence in the management of the companies they invest.
Financial derivatives are financial instruments that are linked to a specific financial instrument or indicator or
commodity, and through which specific financial risks can be traded in financial markets (including on exchanges and over-
the-counter) in their own right.
Other investment refers to other financial claims on and liabilities to non-residents that are not classified as direct
investment, portfolio investment, financial derivatives or reserve assets. It includes non-marketable loans, currency and
deposits, trade credits and financial leases.
Reserve assets consist of foreign currency assets that are readily available to and controlled by the monetary authority of
an economy (in the case of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority) for directly financing payment imbalances and for
indirectly regulating the magnitude of such imbalances through intervention in foreign exchange markets to affect the
currency exchange rate of that economy.
International Investment Position (IIP) is a balance sheet showing an economy抯 stock of external financial assets
and liabilities at a particular time point. External financial assets consist of claims on non-residents and other financial assets
where no debtor is involved (e.g. monetary gold). On the other hand, an economy’s external financial liabilities refer to the
financial claims of non-residents on residents of the economy. Fully consistent with the Balance of Payments financial
account, IIP is categorized by type of investment. Assets and liabilities are divided into direct investment, portfolio
investment, financial derivatives and other investment. The asset side of IIP also includes the reserve assets. For detailed
explanation on investment components, please refer to the explanatory notes on the components of the financial account of
the Balance of Payments account.
Net IIP is the difference between total external financial assets and total external financial liabilities.
Index of industrial production reflects changes in local manufacturing output in real terms, i.e. changes in the volume
of local production after discounting the effect of price changes.
Usable floor area means the aggregate of the areas of the floor or floors in a storey or a building excluding any
staircases, public circulation space, lift landings, lavatories, water-closets, kitchens and any space occupied by machinery for
any lift, air-conditioning system or similar service provided for the building.
Buildings with consents to commence work refer to buildings with consents to commence building works issued by
the Buildings Department. Such “Consents” are issued to private development projects (including Hong Kong Housing
Society’s projects) and Hong Kong Housing Authority抯 development projects under the Private Sector Participation Scheme.
First submission refers to plans for a building project which are first submitted to the Building Authority for approval.
Major revision refers to building plans which have been so extensively revised that they must be fundamentally
reassessed.
Owner-occupier refers to a household which owns the quarters it occupies.
Sole tenant refers to a household which rents the whole quarters it occupies from someone who lives outside the quarters
without sharing it with other household(s) or subletting.
Co-tenant refers to two or more households each of which rents part of the quarters from someone who lives outside the
quarters.
Main tenant refers to a household which rents the whole quarters it occupies from someone who lives outside the quarters
and sublets part of it to other household(s).
Sub-tenant refers to a household which rents part of the quarters from someone who lives in the same quarters.
Rent free refers to a household which occupies an accommodation free, with or without the owner抯 permission. This does
not include owner-occupiers or households occupying accommodation provided by employers.
Accommodation provided by employer refers to a household which occupies an accommodation provided by the
employer of one of the household members. This also includes households occupying quarters leased from employers at a
nominal rent. If a household member uses housing allowance given by his/her employer for renting accommodation, the
tenure is not regarded as accommodation provided by employer.
Imports are goods which have been produced or manufactured in places outside the jurisdiction of Hong Kong and
brought into Hong Kong for domestic use or for subsequent re-export as well as Hong Kong products re-imported. Their
values are recorded on a c.i.f. (cost, insurance and freight) basis.
Domestic exports are the natural produce of Hong Kong or the products of a manufacturing process in Hong Kong which
has changed permanently the shape, nature, form or utility of the basic materials used in manufacture. Their values are
recorded on a f.o.b. (free-on-board) basis.
Re-exports are products which have previously been imported into Hong Kong and which are re-exported without having
undergone in Hong Kong a manufacturing process which has changed permanently the shape, nature, form or utility of the
product. Their values are recorded on a f.o.b. (free-on-board) basis.
Domestic exports to the mainland of China for outward processing refer to raw materials or semi-manufactures
exported from or through Hong Kong to the mainland of China for processing with a contractual arrangement for subsequent
re-importation of the processed goods into Hong Kong.
Imports from the mainland of China related to outward processing refer to processed goods imported to Hong
Kong from the mainland of China, of which all or part of the raw materials or semi-manufactures have been under contractual
arrangement exported from or through Hong Kong to the mainland of China for processing.
Re-exports of the mainland of China origin to other places involving outward processing in the mainland of
China refer to processed goods re-exported through Hong Kong, of which all or part of the raw materials or semi-
manufactures have been exported from or through Hong Kong to the mainland of China for processing with a contractual
arrangement for subsequent re-importation of the processed goods into Hong Kong.
Direct investment refers to external investment in which an investor of an economy acquires a lasting interest and an
effective control over the management of an enterprise located in another economy. For statistical purpose, an effective
control is taken as equivalent to a holding of 10% or more of the equity in an enterprise. Direct investment comprises equity
capital, reinvested earnings and other capital. Equity capital means equity in branches, stock and shares in subsidiaries and
associates. Reinvested earnings consist of the investors share of earnings of their subsidiaries or associates not distributed
as dividends. Other capital includes inter-company debt transactions between parent companies and their subsidiaries,
associates and branches.
Inward direct investment refers to direct investment in a Hong Kong enterprise by a non-Hong Kong resident. Typical
examples of inward direct investment are multinational corporations branches and subsidiaries operating in Hong Kong.
Position of direct investment refers to the value of investment abroad or investment received from abroad of Hong
Kong residents on a specified date.
Flow of direct investment refers to the additions/withdrawals of investment abroad or investment received from abroad
of Hong Kong residents during a period.
Outward direct investment refers to direct investment by a Hong Kong resident in a non-resident enterprise.
Loan Fund finances loans and advances for such schemes as housing loans and education loans. The main sources of
income are appropriations from the General Revenue Account, loan repayments and interest on loans.
Effective Exchange Rate Index (EERI) for the Hong Kong dollar is an index which measure movements in the weighted
average of the exchange rate of the Hong Kong dollar against currencies of major trading partners of Hong Kong. On 1
January 2002, Euro notes and coins replaced notes and coins in national currencies of participating countries of the Euro.
Hence, the currency basket for compiling EERI was updated. A new series of EERI, which includes 14 currencies and is based
on January 2000 as 100, has replaced the old series as from 2 January 2002.
Exchange rates between Hong Kong dollar and other currencies refer to the closing middle market telegraphic
transfer rates or notes rates.
Authorized institutions include licensed banks, restricted licence banks and deposit-taking companies. Licensed banks
can accept deposits of any size and any term of maturity. With the final phase of interest rate deregulation came into effect
on 3 July 2001, there is no restriction on interest rate payable. As for restricted licence banks, they can accept time deposits
in amounts of not less than HK$500,000 with any term of maturity. Deposit-taking companies can however accept time
deposits in amounts of not less than HK$100,000 with a term of maturity of at least three months. Both restricted licence
banks and deposit-taking companies have no restriction on interest rate payable.
Foreign currency swap deposits refer to deposits involving customers buying foreign currencies in the spot market and
placing them as deposits with authorized institutions, while at the same time entering into a contract to sell such foreign
currencies (principal plus interest) forward in line with the maturity of such deposits. For most analytical purpose, they should
be regarded as Hong Kong dollar time deposits.
Money Supply M1 refers to the sum of legal tender notes and coins held by the public plus customers demand deposits
placed with licensed banks.
Money Supply M2 refers to the sum of M1 plus customers savings and time deposits with licensed banks, plus negotiable
certificates of deposits issued by licensed banks held by non-authorized institutions.
Money Supply M3 refers to the sum of M2 plus customer deposits with restricted licence banks (RLBs) and deposit-taking
companies (DTCs) plus negotiable certificates of deposits issued by RLBs and DTCs held by non-authorized institutions.
Hang Seng Index is a market capitalization-weighted index (shares outstanding multiplied by stock price). The 33
constituent stocks of the Hang Seng Index are grouped under four sub-indices, namely Commerce and Industry, Finance,
Properties and Utilities. These stocks account for about 60 percent of the total market capitalization of all stocks listed on
the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited.
Consumer Price Index (CPI) measures the changes over time in the price level of consumer goods and services
purchased by households. The year-on-year rate of change in the CPI is widely used as an indicator of inflation affecting
consumers. Four CPI series are compiled to reflect the impact of consumer price changes on households in different
expenditure ranges. The CPI(A), CPI(B) and CPI(C) are compiled based on the expenditure patterns of households in the
relatively low, medium and relatively high expenditure ranges respectively. A Composite CPI is compiled based on the
overall expenditure pattern of all the above households taken together to reflect the impact of consumer price changes on
the household sector as a whole. The expenditure weight of each item is the share of the item in the total expenditure of
households. Derived from the results of the Household Expenditure Survey, the set of expenditure weights is updated once
every five years to ensure that up-to-date expenditure patterns of households in different expenditure ranges are used in the
compilation of the respective CPIs.
Educational attainment refers to the highest level of education ever attained by a person in school or other educational
institution, regardless of whether he/she had completed the course. Only formal courses are counted as educational
attainment. A formal course shall be one that lasts for at least one academic year, requires specific academic qualifications
for entrance (except most sub-degree and degree courses offered by the Open University of Hong Kong) and includes
examinations or specific academic assessment procedures.
Kindergartens provide services for children from 3 to 6 years old. Most of the kindergartens operate on a half-day basis
offering upper, lower kindergarten classes and nursery classes. Some kindergartens operate full-day kindergarten classes.
All kindergartens have to register with the Education and Manpower Bureau.
Non-degree courses refer to sub-degree courses including associate degree, higher diploma, professional diploma and
other post-secondary programmes of equivalent standards in tertiary educational institutions within or outside Hong Kong.
Degree courses refer to all first degree, taught postgraduate and research postgraduate courses in tertiary educational
institutions within or outside Hong Kong.
Social Security Schemes aim to provide for the basic and special needs of the members of the community who are in
need of financial or material assistance. The non-contributory social security system comprises the Comprehensive Social
Security Assistance Scheme, Social Security Allowance Scheme, Criminal and Law Enforcement Injuries Compensation Scheme,
Traffic Accident Victims Assistance Scheme and Emergency Relief.
Comprehensive Social Security Assistance Scheme provides a safety net for those who cannot support themselves
financially. It is designed to bring their income up to a prescribed level to meet their basic needs. An applicant must satisfy
the residence requirements and pass both the income and assets tests.
Social Security Allowance Scheme provides a monthly allowance to Hong Kong residents who are severely disabled or
who are 65 years of age or above to meet special needs arising from disability or old age. The Scheme includes Normal
Disability Allowance, Higher Disability Allowance, Normal Old Age Allowance and Higher Old Age Allowance. Except for Normal
Old Age Allowance, the allowances paid under the scheme are non-means tested.
Criminal and Law Enforcement Injuries Compensation Scheme aims to provide financial awards to persons (or to
their dependants in cases of death) who are injured as a result of a crime of violence, or by a law enforcement officer using a
weapon in the execution of his duty. It is non-contributory and non-means tested.
Traffic Accident Victims Assistance Scheme aims to provide speedy financial assistance to road traffic accident
victims (or to their dependants in cases of death). It is non-means tested, and does not take into account the element of
fault leading to the occurrence of the accident. Payments are made for personal injuries, while loss of or damage to property
is not covered.
Emergency relief is provided for victims of natural and other disasters such as fire, typhoon, flood, rainstorm, landslide,
house collapse, and also for evacuees of buildings and premises considered to be dangerous under Closure Orders.
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