Most people in Singapore also have maids. I think in Southeast Asia, Singapore traditionally was more affluent, until Hong Kong rose up later.
1 Like
It’s the other way around. SG has pulled way ahead of HK in the last 10 years.
Yea, but wh[quote=“manch, post:22, topic:2920, full:true”]
It’s the other way around. SG has pulled way ahead of HK in the last 10 years.
[/quote]
Yea, but what I meant was that HK rose up later, not necessarily surpassing SG. Singapore was the originally uber rich affluent Asians…at least according to this book 
https://www.amazon.com/Crazy-Rich-Asians-Kevin-Kwan/dp/0345803787
So Hong Kong rose up later but declined faster. Makes sense. There was nothing special about Hong Kong prior to the 50s. Hong Kong started to skyrocket after Mainland China went through a bunch of mishaps (Great Leap Forward and Cultural Revolution). Since it escaped those events, HK grabbed an outsized share of commerce in that region and accelerated its growth.
However, Mainland China started to take off again in the 80s. So HK is no longer special because it now has to compete with a whole bunch of other Chinese cities in proximity. Therefore it is declining much faster than everywhere else.
The biggest blunder HK made was that it should not have allowed Shenzhen to grow alongside its border. It should have had a much more open mind and welcomed that kind of development within its own border. Shenzhen grew from a tiny town to a metropolis of 10 million people in 2 decades. Those same 10 million people could’ve migrated to HK instead and transformed it into a megacity.
[quote=“hanera, post:19, topic:2920”]
I think you’re suitable to become a Singaporean 
Got to leave… will post a cartoon later
[/quote]Only a Singaporean would know the future today…
Kim Huat’s opinion of your view… beyond stupid. He felt you’ve been pulling facts from …
1 Like
Who the hell is Kim Huat? Am I supposed to know who he is???
If Hong Kong tried to build a new city like Shenzhen, it would have failed or the achievement would be 1% of Shenzhen. Social cost, labor cost, trade barrier with mainland etc would prohibit it from happening.
Shenzhen can get cheap labor, cheap land, talent and a whole nation’s business. Hong Kong does not have any of that. Hong Kong benefited from China’s isolation but that condition does not exist any more. It was too easy for Hong Kong to rise and the city did not really build up its economic growth engines
Singapore rose from hard work and it’s more sustainable.
I think HongKong will remain an important city but it’s economy may stagnate or decline. It has to lower its cost before the full integration. Once it’s fully integrated, it will have to compete with Shenzhen on cost as well. This may explain the young people’ fear. If they need to earn the ShenZhen salary and compete for jobs against 1.3 billion people, their prospect is not promising at all. No amount of open mindedness can defy the economic reality.
Wait until Chinese currency becomes a reserve currency. HongKong’s only strength is in finance industry but that could go down quickly if China is ready to open its capital market. After that, HongKong may become a tourist city.
All these economic challenges will not go away even if it can resist full economic integration forever.
For the whole world, this economic equality is also happening quickly. If we can have the world peace for many decades, the economic parity among countries will arrive. But I’m afraid there could be wars since people in the rich countries are starting to resist globalization and street violence reflects the deep economic dissatisfaction
He is a well known online comedian… he is half joking half serious… for entertainment only.
That is not what the current rich “advanced economy” nations want.
Maybe the advanced economies will try to set up China and India in a war. That way, 2 biggest populations will slow their economic progress.
A war in Asia, either east Asia or South Asia, would slow down economic development in Asia and give rich countries opportunites to manipulate. Middle East seems to have had a lot of wars but Asia has been peaceful for over 70 years and Asian economy has been doing very well.
South American countries had a lot of internal issues but there seems to be no fierce wars between countries. Rich countries seem to not cafe about South America that much so it might stay out of the wars
I think Asia is at a great risk. A war involving China or India or both will have a huge impact on world order
The Bel-Air house looks pretty similar to the one Jay-Z and Beyonce’ just bought:
Sources not authorized to publicly comment on the sale have confirmed that the rapper/hip-hop magnate and his superstar wife have closed on a modern mansion in Bel-Air. The purchase price is said to be $90 million, though the sale has not yet been recorded in the public record.
Completed this year, the sprawling showplace comprises six structures with approximately 30,000 square feet of interior space. Expansive patios and terraces create an additional 10,000 square feet of living space outdoors.
Amenities include spa and wellness facilities, a media room and four outdoor swimming pools. Glass-walled common areas open on two sides to enjoy panoramic views. The pocketing glass doors and windows are bulletproof.
Here is a house that makes a statement. .Those big ass mansions just cost a lot of money to maintain. .They are for insecure celebrities to show off to their freeloader friends…
This one just says I am cool…Definitely not my taste…but definitely unique
Not just some mid century imitation
1 Like