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E-voucher scheme could boost Hong Kong economic growth by ‘as much as 6 per cent in third quarter year on year’
- Economist Terence Chong predicts growth rate of city’s gross domestic product between July and September to hit 5 to 6 per cent
- Saturday is the deadline for eligible residents to sign up for the HK$5,000 consumption vouchers
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The strong response to Hong Kong’s consumption voucher scheme could boost the local economy by as much as 6 per cent in the third quarter year on year, with more than 96 per cent of eligible residents expected to have signed up before registration ends on Saturday.
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Some 6.92 million people of the 7.2 million eligible population had already registered for the HK$5,000 e-vouchers as of Saturday evening, according to the latest available statistics.
For the 288,000 people still not enrolled, Saturday is the final chance to sign up.
Those who applied between July 18 and Saturday with one of the four designated electronic payment service providers – AlipayHK, WeChat Pay HK, Tap & Go and Octopus – can pocket the first batch of HK$2,000 e-vouchers on September 1.
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The HK$36 billion initiative was designed to boost local spending and accelerate the city’s economic recovery amid the Covid-19 pandemic. Residents went on a spending spree early this month when more than 5.47 million people, or about 75 per cent of the qualified population, secured their HK$2,000 handout in the first tranche on August 1.
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