Incoming chief exec has high hopes for Hong Kong's future

Hong Kong's chief executive-designate, Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, says she hopes the city will take advantage of China's increasing economic power to seek new impetus for its long-term prosperity and stability.

Lam, the first female chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, said she is optimistic on China's future development and that Hong Kong's rapid growth as an international financial center and regional business hub could not have been achieved without the nation's economic takeoff since the reform and opening-up.

According to the SAR's government, Hong Kong's GDP last year was HK$2.5 trillion ($320.6 billion), an 81 percent nominal increase from 1997.