Part II
Topic: Hong Kong's economic development

Guests:
Mr.Victor Gao Zhikai, director of China National Association of International Studies
Mr.William Hess, senior analyst and country manager from Global Insight

Without economic prosperity, HK would not have been able to enjoy ten years of stability. And the credibility of the "One Country Two Systems" policy would have been seriously compromised. However, despite its sound reputation of being the trade and financial center in East Asia for decades,it went through the 1997 financial crisis and the 2003 SARS crisis with the strong support of the mainland. Now HK has to cope with the ripple effects of the current subprime fiasco in the US.

How shall we look at the shape of the HK economy? Will a possible slowdown of the Mainland's growth and the RMB appreciation affect the territory's inflation and its export? Joining us now here are Mr.Victor Gao Zhikai, the Director of China National Association of International Studies and Mr.William Hess, a Senior Analyst and Country Manager from Global Insight.

By the end of the day, we have to remain level-headed about the future of HK: until the universal suffrage can be smoothly conducted to elect the legislators and the chief executive directly through consultation, there will be a gap between the some of HK political groups and the central authorities in examining the implications of the Basic Law and the One County Two Systems policy. But the core issue currently under debate is when and how. HK is not only seen as an integral part of the mainland but a place where different political forces, Chinese and foreign alike, compete for their niche and try to prevail. A noisy Taiwan is also waiting to see what the future holds for HK despite the island leaders' strong resentment against the notion and experiment of one county with two systems.

Watch Studio Discussion: part 1, part 2

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Editor:Du Xiaodan