Removing Hong Kong’s special status could hurt foreign startups, says Sharif
US President Donald Trump announced he had directed his administration to begin removing certain policy exemptions that gave Hong Kong preferential treatment over mainland China. Some of the policy exemptions that will be removed include export controls on dual-use technologies and Hong Kong's status of having separate customs and travel territories from the rest of China. The areas of Hong Kong start-up companies focused on ranged from financial technology and e-commerce, to logistics and supply chain management. Naubahar Sharif, Associate Professor in Social Science and Public Policy at HKUST and IEMS Faculty Associate, said that some start-ups chose Hong Kong because of its leading universities, but most do so for access to the Chinese market and its advantages, including the rule of law, stability of currency exchange, a robust banking system, and the free flow of goods and services. It's not clear yet whether the US' actions will be targeted at specific industries, or broadly, and to what extent, Sharif said. Removing Hong Kong's special status may make some foreign start-ups less willing to set up in Hong Kong, Sharif added.
Read the news article published on 2 June 2020 on ZDNet.
