Hong Kong plans lower budget deficit as economy expected to recover

HONG KONG: Hong Kong plans to run a much lower budget deficit in the coming fiscal year as the economy is expected to recover from its longest recession on record, Finance Secretary Paul Chan said on Wednesday (Feb 24). The city’s recovery hopes are now pinned on coronavirus vaccines. Often-violent protests and US-China trade tensions in 2019 had plunged the global financial hub into recession even before the pandemic hit. Chan told legislators he expected the budget deficit for the upcoming year to hit HK$101.6 billion (US$13.10 billion), smaller than the record HK$257.6 billion expected for FY2020/21. READ: Hong Kong…