Crude birth rate refers to t he number of live births occurred during a calendar year to the mid-year population of that
year. It is usually expressed in terms of 1000 population.

Crude death rate refers to the number of deaths occurred during a calendar year to the mid-year population of that year. It
is usually expressed in t erms of 1000 population.

Expectation of life at birth refers to the average number of years of life that a male/female born in a given year can
expect to live if he/she were subjected to the prevalent mortality conditions as reflected by the set of age sex specific
mortality rates for that year.

Mid-year population before 1996 was compiled using the "extended de facto" approach. It includes Hong Kong Permanent
and Non-permanent Residents and visitors who are in Hong Kong at the reference time-point . Hong Kong Permanent Res
idents temp orarily away to the mainland of China and Macao are also included. Since August 2000, the "resident population"
approach has been adopt ed in place of the "extended de facto" approach for comp iling Hong Kong population figures.
Revised population figures backdated to 1996 have been compiled. The population estimate compiled under the "resident
population" approach is referred to as the "Hong Kong Resident Population". The "Hong Kong Resident Population" compris
es "Usual Res idents" and "Mobile Residents". "Usual Residents" refer to two categories of people : (1) Hong Kong
Permanent Residents who have stayed in Hong Kong for at leas t three mont hs during the six months before or for at least
three months during the six months after the reference t ime-point, regardless of whether they are in Hong Kong or not at
the reference time-point; and (2) Hong Kong Nonpermanent Resident s who are in Hong Kong at the reference time-p oint .
As for "Mobile Residents ", they are Hong Kong Permanent Residents who have stayed in Hong Kong for at least one mont h
but les s t han three months during the six mont hs before or for at least one month but less than three months during the
six months after the reference time-point, regardless of whether they are in Hong Kong or not at the reference time-point.
Under the new approach, vis itors are not included in t he Hong Kong Population.

Total fertility rate refers t o the average number of children that would be born alive t o 1000 women during their lifetime
if they were to p ass through t heir childbearing ages 15-49 experiencing the age specific fertility rat es prevailing in a given
year.

Infant mortality rate refers to the number of deaths aged under one occurred during a calendar year per 1000 live births
in the same year.

Labour force refers to t he land-bas ed non-inst itutional population aged 15 and over who s atisfy the criteria for inclusion
in the employed p opulation or the unemp loyed population.

Labour force participation rate refers to the proportion of labour force in the land-bas ed non-institutional pop ulat ion
aged 15 and over.

Employed population cons ist s of persons aged 15 and over who have been at work for pay or profit during the seven
days before enumeration or who have had formal job attachment. Unpaid family workers and persons who were on
leave/holiday during the seven days before enumeration are included.

Unemployed population comprises all those persons aged 15 and over who have not had a job, have not performed any
work for pay or profit, have been available for work during the seven days before enumeration and have sought work during
the thirty days before enumeration. It also includes persons without a job who have sought work but unavailable for work
because of temporary sickness; and persons without a job who have been available for work but have not sought work becaus
e they (I) have made arrangements to take up a new job or t o start business at a subsequent date; or (II) were expecting t
o return to their original jobs; or (III) believed that work was not available to them (discouraged workers).

Unemployment rate refers to t he proportion of unemployed persons in the labour force.

Underemployed population comprises thos e employed persons who have involuntarily worked less than thirty-five hours
during the seven days before enumeration and have sought additional work during the thirt y days before enumeration, or
have not sought additional work but have been available for additional work during the seven days before enumerat ion.
Following this definition, employed persons taking no-pay leave due to slack work during the seven days before enumeration
are also classified as underemp loyed if they worked less than t hirty-five hours (or even did not work at all) during the
seven-day period.

Unde remployment rate refers to the proportion of underemployed persons in the labour force.

Real wage index indicates changes in the purchasing power of the amount of money earned as wages by employees up to
supervisory level and is obtained by deflating the nominal wage index by the Consumer Price Index(A).

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 deduct ing allowance forconsumption of fixed capital.

Per capita GDP of a country or terri tory 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) refers to the total income of t he residents of a country or region from engaging in various
economic activities, irrespective of whether the economic activities are carried out in the economic territory of t he country or
region or not. In other words, the gross national product should include the income of the residents engaged in various
economic activities within or outside the economic territory of the country or region, but exclude the income of non-residents
engaged in economic activities in the economic t erritory of the country or region. The following formula is used in the
calculation of the gross national product:

GNP = Gross Domestic Product +Factor income earned by residents from outside the economic territory of the country or
region -Fact or income earned by non-residents from within the economic territory of the country or region.

Per capita GNP of a country or a regi on refers to the gross national product of t he country or region in a year divided
by the total population in the same year.

The components of factor income are mainly classified into investment income and comp ensation of employees.
Investment income includes direct inves tment income, port folio investment income and other investment income.

The it ems "Balance of Payments account s" until "Reserve assets" are applicable to balance of payments account (Table 23-
14):

Balance of Payments (BOP) account is a statistical statement that systematically summarizes, for a specific time period,
the economic t rans actions of an economy with t he rest of the world. A complete BOP account comprises two broad accounts:
(a) Current Account; (b) Cap ital and Financial Account.

Current account largely measures flow of real resources, including export s and import s of good and services, income
receivable and p ayable abroad, and current t ransfers from and to abroad.

Goods comprise all movable goods that change ownership from residents t o non-residents (exports) and from non
-residents to residents (imp orts).

Services include s ervices rendered by residents to nonresidents (exports) and by non-residents to residents (imp orts).

Income consist s of earnings by residents from non-residents (income receivable) and by non-residents from residents
(income payable) for the provision of factors of production.

Current trans fers are those trans actions in which an economy provides to other economies real or financial resources,
that are immediately or shortly consumed, without receiving equivalent values in return.

Capital account measures external transactions in capital transfers, and in acquisition or disposal of non-produced,
nonfinancial ass ets.

Capital transfe rs are t rans fers of ownership of a fixed asset or the forgiveness of a liability without receiving any
economic value in return.

Financial account records transactions in financial assets and liabilities between res idents and non-res idents. It shows
how an economy's ext ernal t ransactions are financed. Transactions in the financial account are classified int o direct inves
tment, portfolio investment, financial derivat ives, other investment and reserve assets.

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 inst ruments ), for which the investors have no lasting int erest 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 t raded in financial markets (including on Exchange 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 derivat ives or res erve assets.

Reserve assets cons ist of foreign currency assets that are readily available to and controlled by monetary authorities of an
economy (in t he case of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Monetary Aut hority) for directly financing payment imbalances and for
indirectly regulating the magnitude of such imbalances through int ervent ion in foreign exchange markets to affect the
currency exchange rate of that economy.

International Investment Position (IIP) is a balance sheet showing an economy's stock of external financial asset s
and liabilit ies at a particular time point. External financial assets consist of claims on non-residents and other specific
financial assets where no debtor is involved (e.g. monetary gold). On the other hand, an economy's external financial
liabilities refer t o the financial claims of non-residents on resident s of the economy.

Net IIP is the difference between t otal external financial as sets and tot al external financial liabilit ies. Fully cons istent
wit h the balance of payments financial account , IIP is categoriz ed by type of investment. As sets and liabilit ies 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 inves tment component s, pleas e refer to the explanat ory not es on the
components of the financial account of the Balance of Payments account.

Index of industrial production measures the changes in local manufact uring outp ut in real terms, i.e. changes in the
volume of local production after dis counting the effect of price changes.

Assignments of building units refer to documents which effect t he transfer of ownership of prop erty of undivided shares
of a lot, i.e. building units.

Buildings with consents to commence work refer to buildings with cons ents to commence building works issued by
the Buildings Department . Such "consent s" are issued to private development projects (including Hong Kong Housing
Society's projects ) and Hong Kong Hous ing Authority's development projects under the Privat e Sect or Particip ation
Scheme, except small hous es in the New Territ ories where "consent s" are not required.

Usable floor area is defined as the aggregate of the areas of the floor or floors in a st orey or a building excluding any
staircas es, public circulation space, lift landings, lavatories, wat erclosets, kitchens and any space occupied by machinery for
any lift, air-conditioning syst em or similar service p rovided for the building.

Tenure of accommodation refers t o the terms or conditions under which accommodation is held by a household. The
different terms are defined as follows:

Owner-occupier refers t o a household which owns t he quarters it occupies.

Sole tenant refers to a household which rent s the whole quarters it occupies from someone who lives outs ide 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 a quarters from someone who lives out side the
quart ers.

Maintenant refers to a hous ehold which rents the whole quarters it occupies from someone who lives outs ide the quarters
and sublets part of it to ot her household(s).

Sub-tenant refers to a household which rents part of a quarters from someone who lives in the same quarters.

Rent free refers to a household which occupies an accommodation free, with or wit hout the owner's permiss ion. This
excludes households occupy ing accommodation provided by employers.

Provided by employer refers to a hous ehold which occupies an accommodation provided by t he employer of one of the
household members . This also includes households occupy ing quarters leased from emp loyers at a nominal rent. If a
household member uses hous ing allowance given by his emp loyer for renting accommodation, the tenure is not considered
as provided by employer.

Inward and outward movements of pass enger trains refer to the through train services operated by the Kowloon-
Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC) between Hong Kong and the mainland of China.

Inward and outward movements of motor vehicles refer to traffic through the Control Points at Lok Ma Chau, Man
Kam To and Sha Tau Kok to and from the mainland of China.

Motor vehicl e licensing conveys the right for a vehicle to be driven on a road. The valid p eriod is either four months or a
year. The t otal vehicles licensed figure refers to end of the year posit ion.

Hotel room occupancy rate is compiled based on daily number of rooms available for sale only. Rooms under repair or
being refurbished are excluded.

Domes tic exports are the natural produce of Hong Kong or the p roducts 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 f.o.b (free-on-board) basis.

Re-exports are products which have previously been imported into Hong Kong and which are re-export ed without having
undergone in Hong Kong a manufacturing process which has changed permanently the shape, nature, form or utility of t he
product. Their values are recorded on f.o.b (free-on-board) basis.

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-exp ort as well as Hong Kong product s re-imported. Their values are
recorded on c.i.f. (cost, insurance and freight) basis.

Exports to the mainland of China for outward processing refer to raw materials or semi-manufactures exported from
or t hrough 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 re lated to outward process ing refer to p roces sed goods imported 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 proces sing.

Re-exports of the mainland of China ori gin to other pl aces invol ving outward proces sing 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 p rocessing with a contractual
arrangement for subsequent re-importation of the proces sed goods into Hong Kong. The items "Direct investment" until
"Flow of direct investment " are applicable to direct investment (Table 23-31 and 23- 32):

Direct investment repres ents inves tment which allows investors in one economy, on a long t erm basis, to influence or
have an effective voice in the management of an enterprise in anot her economy. For statistical purpose, an effective voice is
taken as equivalent to a holding of 10% or more of the equity in an ent erprise. Direct investment comp rises equit y capital,
reinvested earnings and other capital. Equity capital means equity in branches, stock and shares in subsidiaries and as
sociates. Reinves ted earnings consist of inves tors ' share of earnings of their subsidiaries or associates not distribut ed as
dividends. Ot her capital involves inter-company debt transactions. These include short-term or long-term borrowing and
lending of funds between parent companies and their subsidiaries, associat es and branches.

Inward direct investment refers to direct investment in a Hong Kong ent erpris e by a non-Hong Kong resident. Typical
examples of inward direct investment are multinational corporations' branches and subsidiaries operat ing in Hong Kong.

Outward di rect investment refers to direct investment by a Hong Kong resident in a non-resident enterprise.

Pos ition of direct investment refers to the value of investment abroad or investment received from abroad of Hong
Kong residents at a specified date.

Flow of di rect investment refers to t he additions/withdrawals of investment abroad or investment received from abroad
of Hong Kong residents during a period.

A regional headquarters is an office that has control over the operations of offices in the region (i.e. Hong Kong plus one
or more other p laces), and manages the business without frequent referrals to it s parent company out side Hong Kong.

A regi onal office is an office that coordinates offices/ operat ions in the region (i.e. Hong Kong plus one or more other
places ), and manages the business but with frequent referrals to its parent company outs ide Hong Kong or its regional
headquarters.

The Loan Fund is used to finance schemes of the HKSAR Government loans, such as housing loans and st udents loans.
The main sources of income are appropriations from the General Revenue Account, loan repayments and interest on loans.

Effecti ve e xchange rate index (EERI) measures movements in the weighted average of the exchange rate of Hong
Kong Dollar (HKD) against the currencies of major trading partners of Hong Kong.

Exchange rate s between Hong Kong Doll ar and other currencie s refer to the averages of t he daily closing middle
market telegrap hic transfer rates or notes rates.

Authorized institutions include licensed banks, restricted licence banks and deposit-t aking comp anies.

Licensed banks can accept deposits of any size and maturity. Before 1 October 1994, interest rates payable to HK dollar
time dep osit s of less than HK$500,000 for a maturity under fifteen months, were governed by the Interest Rate Rules of the
Hong Kong Association of Banks. However, the Interest Rate Rules have been liberalized by phases s ince t hen. As from 2
November 1995, the rules only apply to current accounts, savings accounts and time dep osit s with a maturity below seven
days.

Restricted licence banks can accep t t ime deposits in amounts of not less than HK$500,000 with any term of maturity.
There is no restriction on interest rate payable.

Deposit-taking compani es can accept time deposits in amounts of not less than HK$100,000 with a term of maturity of
at least three months. There is no res triction on interest rate payable.

Foreign currency swap deposits refer to deposits involving customers buy ing foreign currencies in the spot market and
placing them as deposits wit h authorized instit utions , 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 deposit s. 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 p ublic plus cus tomers' demand depos its
placed with licensed banks.

Money Supply M2 refers t o the sum of M1 plus customers ' savings and time deposits with licensed banks , plus
negotiable certificates of dep osits issued by licensed banks held by non-authorized institut ions.

Money Supply M3 refers to the sum of M2 plus customer deposits with restrict ed licence banks and dep osit-t aking
companies plus negotiable certificates of deposits issued by restricted licence banks and deposit-taking companies held by
non-authorized institut ions.

Hang Seng Index launched on 24 November 1969, is the key barometer of the Hong Kong stock market and reflects
general p rice movements and the performance of the market as a whole.

Consumer Price Index (CPI) summarizes changes in the price level of consumer goods and services purchased by
households. Its change measures the change over time in the total cost of a given basket of goods and services. Its year-
on-year rate of change is an important indicator of inflation affecting consumers. The year-on-y ear rat e of change is the
percentage increase or decrease in the current index compared to that in the same period of preceding year.

Different CPIs are compiled by the Census and Statistics Department of the HKSAR 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. A Composite
CPI is compiled based on the expenditure patt erns of all households t aken together to reflect the impact of consumer price
changes on the household sect or as a whole.

The expenditure weights of the CPIs are updated once every five years. The expenditure weights current ly in use are
derived from t he results of the Household Expenditure Survey conducted in 1999/2000 .

Educational attainment refers to the highest level of educat ion ever att ained by a person in s chool or ot her 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 atleas tone academic year, requires specific academic qualificat ion for
entrance (except sub-degree, associat e degree, degree and post -graduate cours es offered by the Op en Universit y of
Hong Kong) and includes examinations or specific academic as sessment procedures.

Kindergarten refers to all classes in kindergarten.

Non-degree course refers to all higher diploma/endorsement certificat e courses in technical institutes/technical colleges
(technical inst itut es and t echnical colleges were merged as the Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education in 1999)/p
olytechnics (t he present universities), as sociateship and other nonassociateship courses in polytechnics (the present
universities) and other p ost-secondary colleges. Certificat e/diploma courses in colleges /institute of education and in the
Hong Kong Technical Teachers' College and nurse training cours es are also included in his cat egory.

Degree course refers to all first degree courses and postgraduate courses in tertiary educational institutions in Hong Kong
and overseas.

Social Security S chemes aim t o provide for the basic and special needs of t he members of our community who are in
need of financial or mat erial ass istance. The non-contributory social security sys tem comprises: the Comprehensive Social
Security Assistance Scheme, the Social Security Allowance Scheme, t he Criminal and Law Enforcement Injuries Compens at
ion Scheme, t he Traffic Accident Victims As sis tance Scheme and Emergency Relief.

The Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) Scheme (known as Public Assistance (PA) Scheme before 1
July 1993), which is means-tested, is designed t o provide financial assistance to bring the income of needy individuals or
families up to a pres cribed level to meet t heir basic needs.

The Social Security Al lowance (SSA) Scheme (known as Sp ecial Needs Allowance (SNA) Scheme before 1 July 1993)
comprises Old Age Allowance (OAA) and Disability Allowance (DA). It provides monthly allowance to elderly persons aged 65
or above and s everely disabled persons to meet special needs arising from old age or disability.

The Criminal and Law Enforcement Injuries Compensation (CLEIC) Scheme provides cash assis tance for people
injured or for dependants of those killed in crimes of violence and law enforcement acts on a non-means-tested basis.

The Traffic Accident Victims Assistance (TAVA) Scheme p rovides sp eedy cash ass is tance for p eople injured or for
dep endants of those killed in road traffic accident. It is a nonmeans- tested scheme which does not take into account the
element of fault in causing the accident. Payments cover only personal injury and death but not damage to property.

Emergency relief is to help victims of natural and other dis asters by means of mat erial aid, including cooked meals and
other essential relief art icles.

Offenders arrested refer to p ersons arrested for crime, whet her or not they are prosecuted. Persons arrested for crime
who are between the ages of 7 and 15 are called juvenile offenders and those of the ages between 16 and 20 are called
young offenders.