Bulletin No. 1, 2011

Keeping Posted on a Former Vice-Chancellor 21  2010, 23 million were from the mainland and it is these visitors that helped keep the unemployment rate low in Hong Kong. I believe, however, Hong Kong still has a useful role to play, especially if it is able to serve its immediate hinterland of Guangdong and Shenzhen well as not only their financial centre but also their logistics and educational and R&D centre. The Chinese economy is certainly large enough that it can have more than one international financial centre. And Guangdong and Shenzhen lack strong universities and R&D institutions and Hong Kong can help fill the void. The Central Government will be supportive of whatever Hong Kong may propose to do. Hong Kong’s principal lasting comparative advantage is still its relatively high degree of internationalization compared to other Chinese cities even though for the time being it still has the advantage of a convertible currency, free capital mobility, and free trade. These advantages will disappear as the Renminbi is increasingly internationalized and the mainland reorients itself as an internal-demand- driven economy. Hong Kong must try to integrate its economy closer with Guangdong and Shenzhen, making the relationship between them mutually enhancing and beneficial—in other words, win-win! W hat is your future plan? I have a little more leisure now, although not as much as I wish. Compared to the CUHK years, I have relatively little administrative work to do. But, as I just said, I still have a number of academic, professional and public duties. What I would like to do when I have more time is to begin to write a book on the experience of the Chinese economic reform since 1978 and to start practising Chinese calligraphy which I have not done for more than 40 years. Doing Chinese calligraphy is a good way of cultivating one’s mind and temperament and reducing stress. However, I need to do it regularly, like every day.