Hong Kong should focus on developing its high-end logistics industry and leave the expansion of container terminals to neighbouring cities in China's Guangdong province, a senior Chinese official was quoted as saying by a newspaper on Friday.
The comments were the most overt indication so far from central government officials that Hong Kong should rethink its pursuit of shipping-centre status. Hong Kong has been facing keen competition from ports in China's southern cities, mainly Shenzhen, and lost its position as the world's busiest container port to Singapore in 2005.
"Retaining Hong Kong's status as an international shipping centre means moving everything made in Guangdong to Hong Kong ports," said Zhang Xiaoqiang, deputy chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission. "This increases the time and cost of transporting the products," he told the South China Morning Post.
Hong Kong has long been a major entrepot centre for China but the rapid development of container ports in southern Chinese cities, which are closer to factories in the Pearl River Delta and charge less than Hong Kong, has threatened the city's position.
Zhang, who is in charge of Hong Kong and Macau affairs in the commission, said it was important that there be a division of labour in the region's logistics flow.
"This would allow Hong Kong to focus more on the high-end logistics industry," he said. Rapid growth in Chinese ports has seen Shanghai overtaking Hong Kong in throughput in April and Shenzhen is likely to surpass Hong Kong next year in terms of traffic volume.