*********************************************************
The Statistics Advisory Board held a meeting today (December 7) to review the main scope of government statistical work and its recent developments.
At the meeting, Members were informed that population and labour force projection exercises were carried out following the availability of a new population base from the 2006 Population By-census (06BC) conducted by the Census and Statistics Department (C&SD). The compilation methods and salient results of the two projection exercises were also presented at the meeting.
"With the availability of the 06BC results, the population estimates since 2001 were updated. In line with the revision of population estimates, a new set of population projections, covering the period from 2007 to 2036, had been prepared and was released in July 2007. The latest population projections have made use of the most up-to-date information on fertility, mortality and movement patterns of the population which have emerged since the compilation of the last set of population projections for 2004 to 2033," said Commissioner for Census and Statistics and Chairman of the Statistics Advisory Board, Mr Fung Hing-wang.
"With reference to the results of 2006-based population projections and the trends of the sex-age specific labour force participation rates, we have also compiled a new set of Hong Kong labour force projections covering the period from 2007 to 2026. The projection results provide useful statistics on the size and composition of the Hong Kong labour force over the period from 2007 to 2026, which are important determinants of economic development. The new set of labour force projections is scheduled for release in December 2007 via the Hong Kong Monthly Digest of Statistics," Mr Fung continued.
Members noted that the 06BC provided a wealth of data on the demographic and socio-economic characteristics of the Hong Kong population. A special study was recently carried out to analyse the characteristics of persons from the Mainland having resided in Hong Kong for less than 7 years based on the data collected from the 06BC. The major analyses of this special sub-group of the population, including size and age-sex structure, demographic characteristics, educational attainment, employment situation, living arrangement, household characteristics and geographical distribution, were highlighted at the meeting. The thematic report on the study would be published in December 2007.
Also reported at the meeting was the progress regarding the development of an online Interactive Data Dissemination System (IDDS) for the 06BC. The IDDS aimed to provide a dynamic and interactive service for users to access a wide range of population statistics and to compile customised statistical tables, charts and thematic maps that could best meet their personal needs.
Members were briefed on the preliminary results of the 2005 round of the International Comparison Program (ICP) for the Asia-Pacific region, of which Hong Kong was one of the 23 participating economies. Coordinated by the World Bank, the ICP is a major global statistical initiative for deriving data for measuring Purchasing Power Parities (PPP) among different currencies, enabling a better cross-economy comparison of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and some other important economic aggregates.
Members were also updated on the developments in national income statistics. As from October 2007, the chain volume measures of GDP and its components were adopted to replace the previous constant price measures. Apart from providing a better measure of the real growth of GDP, the chain volume measures also enabled the compilation of GDP of Hong Kong to further align with the latest international statistical guidelines. This in turn helped enhance the international comparability and ensure the methodological soundness of Hong Kong's GDP statistics.
The Board also reviewed other statistical developments since the previous meeting, including recent efforts made by C&SD in strengthening the communication and coordination with the international statistical community; and the range of activities in commemoration of the 40th anniversary of C&SD.
The Statistics Advisory Board is a non-statutory advisory body which advises the Commissioner for Census and Statistics on matters pertaining to government statistical work. The terms of reference and composition of the Board can be found on the C&SD Website (www.censtatd.gov.hk/about_us/our_advisory_board/index.jsp). Agenda of the recent meetings of the Board together with the press releases on key issues discussed are also posted there.
Ends/Friday, December 7, 2007
Issued at HKT 17:00
NNNN