(Yicai Global) July 30 --The ravages wrought by the pandemic snipped an annual 9 percent off Hong Kong's gross domestic production in the second quarter, albeit a smaller drop than the first quarter’s 9.1 percent.

The region’s GDP fell slightly by 0.1 percent monthly, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Census and Statistics Department extrapolated from data it released yesterday.

The pestilence still poses a major threat to the world’s economy. Ongoing economic and trade relations and intensifying geopolitical tensions have also freighted the situation with uncertainty, a spokesperson for the SAR government said, adding the challenging external environment will hinder Hong Kong’s short-term exports. The recent coronavirus flareup has also cast further doubt on short-term economic prospects.

The region's economy will slowly recover throughout the rest of the year if the Covid-19 comes back under control and the outside environment keeps improving, the spokesperson continued.

The disease was generally held in check in May and June. Economic recovery in the mainland will also partly offset external adverse factors besetting Hong Kong's goods exports. Local economic conditions showed signs of steadying in the second quarter, though the pandemic continued to buffet both the global and local economy. Hong Kong’s continued to decline yearly overall in the quarter as demand at home and from overseas stayed weak.

The SAR government’s consumption-spurring outlays rose 9.6 yearly, higher than the first’s 8.8 percent of growth. But private consumption fell 14.5 percent yearly in the period from the pandemic’s hit as worsening joblessness blunted consumption.

Hong Kong's overall investment spending continued to plummet, and total fixed capital formation fell 20.6 percent yearly in the quarter in a decline 4.8 percentage points higher than the first quarter’s.

The region's services output fell sharply in the period as inbound tourism slowed to a trickle, down 46.6 percent yearly, much higher than the 37.4 percent drop in the previous quarter. The value of exports also fell 2.1 percent yearly. though the resumption of production in the mainland meant the contraction was 7.6 percentage points lower than the first quarter’s.

Editor: Ben Armour