The Hong Kong Institute of Economics and
Business Strategy (HIEBS – 香港經濟及商業策略研究所) is a research center of the Faculty
of Business and Economics at The University of Hong Kong. As an
Area of Excellence (AoE) recipient it was principally funded by the
University Grants Committee in the period
1999-2006. Since then it has raised its own funding to
sustain and support its work.
HIEBS has been active in initiating research
projects and disseminating its findings through a variety of channels. During the UGC funded
period it generated over 400 pieces of research output published as international journal
articles, book chapters, conference papers, teaching
cases and working papers. The Institute also held over 40 knowledge exchange events,
including conferences, symposia, seminars and public lectures. It has worked with scholars from
universities and research institutions within Hong Kong as well as from
overseas. The Institute’s activities have earned it a
reputation as the premier centre for economic policy
and business strategy studies in Hong Kong, especially
among policy makers.
Policy research is critical
to the formulation of
sound economic policy,
and articulation of novel
alternatives is important
for
companies to adopt
appropriate strategies. This
is of particular importance
due to the rapidly evolving business landscape.
The Institute has played a pivotal role in
providing research-based answers to important policy
questions and business strategy issues.
Furthermore, the Institute has been developing
innovative educational programs to train
researchers and practitioners for Hong Kong,
China and the Asia-Pacific region. The research
undertaken at the Institute has fed into the
development of a large body of teaching cases
that has brought excitement to the classroom
and enriched the learning experience of
students
not only at HKU, but world-wide through the
dissemination of these cases by the
Harvard
Business School and the European Case Clearing
House.
Some of the recent research projects
undertaken
at the Institute include:
Rethinking Hong Kong’s Human
Resources and Competitiveness
One of the key pillars o f Hong Kong’s
competitiveness is its human resource pool. Yue-Chim Wong and Ka-Fu Wong examine in Hong
Kong Mobile (edited by Helen Siu and Agnes
Ku, HKU Press, 2009) the crucial role massive
waves of immigration from China have played
in shaping Hong Kong’s economic development
over the past 60 years. This influx, together
with the post-war baby boom and the onset of
the demographic transition, triggered a huge
demand for human capital investment. This has
created a bulge in the stock of human capital of
the population age group that will soon be going
into retirement. The diagram below illustrates
by cohort the percentage of first degree holders
in each age group relative to the population
of first degree holders. As we move across the
population cohort from 1996 to 2031, the
distribution and therefore the median age of
these degree holders shifts upward.
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Compared to leading economic cities like
New York, London, Tokyo, Beijing, and Shanghai, Hong Kong’s stock of human
capital is lagging. |
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The ageing of the human capital stock
suggests that the impact of human capital
investment of sustaining economic growth
will wane in coming decades. It is now
too late to catch up and sustain future
economic growth through
investing in the human
capital
of
the existing
population alone.
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Accordingly, Hong Kong
needs to have an infusion
of diverse and sophisticated
talents from abroad to
sustain a knowledge-based
future.
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The projections of the
ageing human capital stock
of first degree holders
shown here implies that
allowing a mild net inflow
is not enough to replenish the
talent pool in the working
population;
instead a massive infusion is required.
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The inflow may take the form of
immigrants
and working visitors. To do so a set of
viable policies has to be established to
facilitate the circulation and flow of talents
to add economic value to the Hong Kong
population.
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China Into the Future: Making Sense of
the World’s Most Dynamic Economy
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Edited by W.J
Hoffman and Michael
J Enright.
John Wiley, 2008
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The Institute has
built up an enviable capacity to conduct
competitiveness studies of the Asia-Pacific region. This edited volume
bring together
perspectives from the world’s leading China
experts on the geopolitical, domestic political,
social and economic forces that will drive China’s
development going forward. The essays in the
book:
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Explain why China’s economic
competitiveness is overstated by those
who focus on “Made in China" products
and understated by those who fail to
understand China’s international linkages;
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Discuss macroeconomic and national
conditions important to firms in China; |
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Cover how demographics, social imbalances, regional disparities, environmental degradation, and corruption are forcing the Chinese Government to depart from past policies in unanticipated ways; |
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Provide many scenarios for China’s
future. None are pre-ordained, and all are filled with challenges and
opportunities for companies and policy makers alike.
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Hong Kong manufacturing and the economies of the Pearl River and Yangzi River
Deltas
The Institute conducted two large scale surveys of businesses to
determine the scale and scope of manufacturing activities. Alan K F Siu
and Zhigang Tao led the development and analyses of these
surveys. Both studies generated a wealth of new information on the
extent and nature of interaction between Hong Kong, the
Pearl River Delta, and the Yangzi River Delta regions.
These studies have shaped the policy discussion of the
future development of the two regions. The main findings
have been adopted by official bodies and cited repeatedly in
academic writings as well as the media.
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The Pearl River Delta study was
conducted in collaboration with
the Hong Kong Federation of
Industries.&nbps;
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The Yangzi River Delta study was
undertaken in partnership with the School of Management, Fudan
University.
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Hong Kong High Frequency
Macroeconomic Forecasting
Given its small open economy, it is difficult to
provide good macroeconomic forecasts for Hong
Kong because of the persistence of large and unanticipated external shocks. The research to
apply Professor Lawrence Klein’s high frequency macroeconomic forecasting methodology was led
by Alan K F Siu. The new method utilizes the most updated information available at high
frequency and represents a novel approach
to improving the forecast accuracy of short term macroeconomic
performance. The results provide the community with timely information
useful for tracking the short term fluctuations of the economy. The
current quarter macro forecasts have
been released on a quarterly basis since 1999 and are widely covered
in the media. Through this project, the Institute has built on its research
capacity to address economic policy issues in a timely manner. The tables
on the right and below give recent forecasts of key economic variables
and track the evolution of actual and forecasted GDP in the past decade.
New Studies in the Pipeline
Ongoing research being conducted at the
Institute includes:
Hong Kong’s Role in a Networked Service
Economy
At the center of the modern global
economy of trade and investment flows is a
networked service economy. Hong Kong’s ability to add
value to the global networked economy is vital for its continued
prosperity. This study critically examines the factors that would either foster
or inhibit the creation of such a role for Hong Kong. The study will cover the financial services
sector, professional services, education and health services, and business and
trade services.
Understanding Income Inequality in Hong Kong
Measured income inequality has been on the
rise for almost two decades. This is a politically
charged subject in policy debates. However,
the causes of the apparent widening in income
disparity are not clearly understood. This study
attempts to deconstruct the inequality measures
and examine the underlying causes. The aim
is to gain a deeper understanding of what is
happening before deciding whether policy
initiatives are needed, and what form these
policies should take.
Political Economy of the Decline of
Economic Liberalism and the Rise of
Populism in Hong Kong
In the last two decades public policy has become
much more about how to divide the economic
pie as opposed to how to grow
the pie. The
old policy consensus built
around economic
liberalism has been
increasingly weakened,
giving way to
sectional interests focused on
distributive populism. This study explores why
this is the case through an examination of Hong
Kong’s economic transformation in the past 60
years, and its effects on various
stakeholders and
interest groups.
Rebuilding a Private Economy and
Enlightened Citizenry - Public Housing
Subsidized Home Ownership, and Private
Housing
A large fraction of Hong Kong’s population lives
as renters
in government-owned and subsidized public housing. Another
considerable proportion lives as homeowners in government-provided subsidized
housing with restricted transfer rights. This creates a society where
half the population is tied down in a single location and community
for a big part of the day, defining how inhabitants engage with their
community throughout most of their lives. Such circumstances inevitably
impact political, social and economic discourse in major ways and affect
citizens’ personal aspirations and social demands. This study seeks to delineate
all these aspects and explore whether creative alternatives exist to rebuild a private economy
with enlightened citizenry.
Project Coordinator:
Prof YC Richard Wong
(HKU)
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