A top Chinese commerce chief has vowed to look into parallel trading activities that have caused havoc along the Hong Kong-China border in recent weeks.
In an interview with Ming Pao Daily, Zhang Mao, director of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC), said mainland visitors who take part in illegal smuggling, more commonly referred to as “parallel trading”, are hurting commercial activities in both Hong Kong and China.
Zhang described the phenomenon – whereby traders monitor the price differences between Hong Kong and the mainland and hide smuggled goods from customs officials – as a form of unfair competition.
The Chinese central government has issued a statement saying that it will refine the individual traveler scheme “to better suit Hong Kong’s situations”.
It is still unclear how Beijing plans to tackle the problem, but there have been rumours that visits by Shenzhen residents, who are currently allowed unlimited travel to Hong Kong, could be curtailed to just a few trips in a given year.
However, political commentator Johnny Lau said the central government views the traveller scheme and parallel trading as two separate issues, while the Hong Kong government sees the individual travel programme as a reason for the increase in parallel trading activities.
Following clashes in Sheung Shui, Tuen Mun, and Tsim Sha Tsui last Sunday, in which a total of six people were arrested, LegCo president Jasper Tsang released a statement condemning the aggression by all sides and urging both governments to take action to resolve the tension.
Photo: Kevin Dharmawan
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