Hong Kong’s finance secretary, Paul Chan, is reluctant to overhaul the tax system as society is already facing difficult geopolitical times.

Hong Kong’s finance minister has revealed for the first time that he was reluctant to overhaul the city’s tax system despite its large deficit, citing a difficult external environment and geopolitics.

“Geopolitics and the external environment have been difficult. These are the challenges. There are also a lot of unsubstantiated claims, causing a lot of anxiety in our society,” he said.

“At this stage, it may be unwise to prematurely test something that you don’t think can be implemented in the short term… Don’t get distracted by problems you don’t intend to address.”

Speaking to about 150 guests, Chan said the immediate focus is to restore confidence and boost sentiment both domestically and with investors.

“No city in this world will replace Hong Kong,” he said, trying to excite the audience.

Coincidentally: Hong Kong budget – all real estate regulations abolished to promote market

“There’s no need to be too pessimistic…we’ll continue to strengthen our foundations so that we’re ready when the tide comes. We’ll be able to grow.”

In his budget speech in February, Mr Chan called on investors and Hongkongers to vote of confidence after laying out a raft of measures to foster high-quality growth and boost confidence in Hong Kong amid weak sentiment. Ta.