Hong Kong Economic Association

President's Report for the Year 1997/1998

Pacific Economic Review

The PER, published by Blackwell, Oxford is fast establishing itself as a top-ranking international journal in economics. World renowned economists including Paul Samuelson, Alan Blinder, Gregory Chow, Lawrence Lau, Yew Kwang Ng, etc. have published in the journal, and we continue to attract quality articles from different corners of the world. The PER is also listed in the Journal of Economic Literature data base.

In 1997, the Pacific Economic Review was published in February, June, and October. February 1998 saw the first Special Issue published under the title "Pacific Rim Economic Conference Selected Papers." Other planned special issues are as follows:-

- Currency Board and Exchange Rate Arrangements: Theory and Issues in East and Southeast Asia

- Financial Economics

- Hong Kong's Reversion to China and Its Economic Effects

- Efficiency vs. Equality in Public Policy

Starting in 1998, there will be a new, non-regular, section in the Review. Under the title of Perspectives on Public Policy, it is edited by Prof. Lok Sang Ho and features shorter, non-technical articles on public policy of interest to readers in the Asia Pacific Region and beyond.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the Editors and the Editorial Board, particularly Prof. Eden Yu and Prof. Kenneth Chan Editors, and Prof. L.S.Ho, Managing Editor, for their excellent work. Thanks are due also to the continuous financial support of the Lippo Group, and the seven institutional members, namely, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, The City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Baptist University, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Lingnan College, and the University of Hong Kong.

Lippo Prize
The Lippo Prize for the Best Paper in the Pacific Economic Review 1996 was granted to Prof. Gregory Chow and Prof. Yum Keung Kwan for their paper "Economic Effects of Political Movements in china: Lower Bound Estimates". The award ceremony was held during the Far Eastern Meeting of the Econometric Society (see below).

Joint Conference with OUHK
The association jointly sponsored with the Open University of Hong Kong an international conference on "China at the turn of the Century", 17 January 1998. Participants included economists, sociologist, political scientists, and historians from Hong Kong University, Chinese university, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, City University, Baptist University, Open University, and Lingnan College; in addition to scholars from Australia and New Zealand. The Association contributed a sum of HK$10,000 towards covering the costs of the conference. The President attended the conference and two representatives from the Executive Committee were also invited to the conference dinner.

Reception for participants of the Far Eastern meeting of Econometric society
The Association hosted a cocktail reception, with the Economics Department of the Chinese University, in honor of the participants of the Far East Meeting of (world) Econometric Society at the Royal Park Hotel, 24 July 1997. The majority of the participants of the FE meeting, numbering well over 100 members, accepted the invitation to attend.

The Inaugural Y.C. Jao Lecture
Professor Y.C. Jao, former President of the Association, has kindly agreed to sponsor a series of lectures named after him. The first such lecture was given by a distinguished international scholar, Professor Herschel Grossman, (who holds the Chair of Merton P. Stoltz Professor of Economics at Brown University), under the title "The Economics of Appropriative Conflict" at the City University of Hong Kong, 15 January 1998. A second Y.C. Jao lecture has been planned on May 20 this year. Prof. James Anderson of Boston College, an authority on trade theory and trade policy, has already accepted the invitation.

Luncheon Seminars
Two luncheon seminars were held at Furama hotel, both given by prominent speakers as follows:-

"The IMF and Asia with Special Reference to the Current Financial Crisis"

Mr. Kunio Satio, Director of the Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, International Monetary Fund, 6 November 1997

"The United States-Hong Kong Economic Partnership"

Mr. Richard A. Boucher, Consul General, United States of America, Hong Kong, 13 January 1998

Spring Dinner and Public Forum

A public forum on "the Current State of the Hong Kong Economy in the light of the First Budget of the SAR Government" was organized by the Association and held at Chinese General Chamber of Commerce, 25 February 1998.

The panelists included:-

1. Prof. L.S.Ho, director of Centre For Public Policy Studies, Lingnan College.
2. Mr. Edward H.K. Leung, Chief Economist, Trade Development Council.
3. Prof. Francis Lui, director, Centre For Economic Development, HKUST.
4. Dr. Guonan Ma, Co-head of Economic Research, Asia pacific Region, Salomon Smith Barney. 5. Prof. Y.Y. Kueh, moderator.

The forum was well attended and was followed by the annual "Spring Dinner" of the Association.

Membership

Total membership stood at 214 by the end of April, 1998, with breakdown as follows:-

However, for the current year, as yet only 126 members have paid the membership fees or are exempted from such fees. We expect more of the members will pay up in the course of the year.

Y. Y. Kueh
President
(1997-98)