Hong Kong’s special status with the U.S. now appears to be under threat, as U.S.-China tensions ramped up after Beijing proposed a new security law for the Chinese special administrative region.
On Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told Congress that Hong Kong was no longer highly independent from China. He pointed to Beijing’s proposed law that would effectively bypass Hong Kong’s legislature, reigniting concerns over the city’s diminishing freedoms.
Hong Kong’s trade with the U.S. would suffer a significant impact if tariffs were imposed.
U.S. goods and services trade with Hong Kong totaled more than $66 billion in 2018, according to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR). U.S. exports to Hong Kong were $50.1 billion, while imports were $16.8 billion, according to the data.
The city would still be treated as an independent customs territory by the World Trade Organization, and as a separate entity by other institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
— CNBC’s Tucker Higgins contributed to this report.
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