Hong Kong Population Drops by Record as People Flee Covid Curbs
- Financial hub’s population falls by 1.6% over past 12 months
- City cites strict pandemic curbs as factor in decline
A quiet plaza by commercial buildings in Hong Kong, China, on July 31.
Photographer: Billy H.C. Kwok/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Hong Kong’s population dropped by a record as people fled strict Covid-19 restrictions that have hobbled the city as most other regions move on from the pandemic.
The city saw a decline of 121,500 residents in the year ended June 30, leaving the population at about 7.29 million, according to government data released Thursday. That means the population fell 1.6%, marking the third straight year of declines and the biggest drop in at least six decades. A wide-reaching national security law may have also been a contributing factor.