Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) form a vital component of Hong Kong’s business force. There are about 330,000 SMEs in Hong Kong which account for 98 per cent of the total business units, creating job opportunities for 1.3 million people, as of June 2017. They constitute about 46 per cent of total employment excluding the civil service, according to the Hong Kong Standard Industrial Classification (HSIC) from the Census and Statistics Department.
In her maiden policy address, Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor proposed new taxation measures, among which the tax rate for the first HK$2 million (US$256,343) of profits will be halved to 8.25 percent from 16.5 percent.
The tax cut is no doubt good news for SMEs. Nonetheless, SME owners in general don’t think the government is offering them much support in other areas.
