Hong Kong City Of Yesterday

     Hong Kong used to be a really good place to live but things change and Hong Kong is slowly changing backwards. Before it was the Pearl of the Orient now it is a pimple on China’s backside. Somehow I think Hong Kong hasn’t got long to go before is just another city of no significant importance. China is just flying ahead and Hong Kong seemed to have somehow stopped somewhere around the time of the Asia financial crisis. Possible the only reason Hong Kong is still viable is because it has been taken under China’s umbrella. 

     The biggest threat to Hong Kong is the Hong Kong people will soon realize they are getting left behind. Before they flashed their money around on the mainland now the mainland Chinese are flashing their money around HK. Before the HK people were the big buyers of property on the mainland, now the mainlanders are big buyers of property in HK. Before it was commonplace to rip off the HK tourists now the mainlanders are getting ripped off in HK. 

     Also before the almighty HK dollar was the currency of choice in Asia now the China Renminbi is the only currency to have. The HK dollar is pegged to the US dollar and as the US dollar goes through the floor so does the HK dollar. And lately the interest rate in China is getting better while HK interest rates have stayed the same, so putting your money in Renminbi in a Chinese bank will give you a better return than leaving it in a bank in HK dollars in HK. The big problem is the HK people are starting to realize this. Before they thought HK was the only place to be. Now they are starting to think maybe it isn’t. 

      At the moment the government has a fifty-year free period before the Chinese take over the government, but the HK govn just doesn’t seem to realize they are not very far away from a vote of no confidence. And then what happens. The latest debungle from the government is the minimum wage bill. HK had a 100-years of British rule and during that time they keep the Asian way of paying wages, which is a monthly figure. That is you get so much money a month for your salary. 

    Now they have had 14 years of Chinese rule and they are trying to bring in the British way of paying wages, which is by the hour. And the minimum wage is $28/hour, an embarrassment to any modern city. Now it seems the minimum wage is less than what a lot of low paid staff were getting before. Now they receive less than what they were receiving before. So as to be expected now there is a lot of discontent in Hong Kong. 

    Normally when you bring in a minimum wage you try to get more money for the workers at the lower end of the wage scale. Another first for HK lowering the minimum wage so you get less than you got before. Before the wage bill I can’t remember anyone complaining about their wages. I think this is in response to the Guangzhou government raising the minimum wage by 50% to 1,500 yuan a month. In China the govn is trying to stimulate spending and it seems to be working. Now Guangzhou rocks, people are spending money like it is going out of fashion.

      Another little news topic that paints the mainlanders as rather rich neighbors is they want to have babies in HK and they are willing to pay $40,000 HK dollars to do so. So they can get the HK passport. Before there was a problem with the mainlanders coming to HK to get the free medical. Now they come with the money. And a lot of hospitals are already booked up. 

     Here in China/Hong Kong there is a complete mix up. In mainland China a lot of people still think the west is better than China even with the news coverage of the financial crisis. They just don’t seem to realize that now China is one of the greatest countries on the planet and it is getting better. So they are trying to leave for greener pastures and Hong Kong is a greener pasture until they get there. 

     On the other hand Hong Kong used to be a great city where money flowed freely but now it doesn’t. It got left behind and overshadowed by the rise of China. And some still think the mainland is some sort of backward country but the realization is slowly seeping into the minds of the masses. The wake up call is there and the ones who retire to the mainland know they have made the right decision.

     Hong Kong just doesn’t seem to realize that China is running out of clean water and very soon food could be an issue. Hong Kong are at the end of the pipeline and when China has water issues Hong Kong will have water issues. I don’t think Hong Kong people realize this. They think every time they turn the tap on water will come out but that is not going to last forever. What is so striking is Hong Kong is doing nothing about it whereas Singapore is the Asia leader in water systems. To survive the future you need in house recycling and at the moment there is no recycling in China or Hong Kong. China will change soon I hope.

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