Hong Kong and China, Then and Now 1841: China cedes Hong Kong to the British following the Opium War. Piracy and smuggling become a way of life. 1875: Hong Kong becomes entrepot and shipping center in Asia. 1898: Hong Kong expands with leasing of New Territories from China. 1941: Japanese occupation devastates the economy. 1949: People's Republic of China founded. Communists seal border. Shanghai industrialists move machinery and workforces to Hong Kong. Refugees flood in. 1950: Hong Kong serves as foreign currency provider for the mainland's low-cost products. 1951: U.N. embargo on China trade. Hong Kong accelerates drive to be a manufacturing center. 1962: Swarms of refugees fleeing the disastrous Great Leap Forward descend on Hong Kong. 1978: Deng's open door economic policy encourages Hong Kong manufacturers to set up shop in China, where labor is cheap. 1982: Shenzhen Economic Zone established. Hong Kong's light industry shifts to China. 1983: Hong Kong currency is pegged to U.S. dollar. 1984: Sino-British treaty on the return of Hong Kong is signed. 1987: Stock market crashes; closes for four days. 1988: Hong Kong property barons start investing heavily in China. 1989: Massive protests in Hong Kong against the Tiananmen massacre leading to the adoption of the Bill of Rights. 1990: First ''red chip'' lists in Hong Kong. 1992: Shanghai and Yangtze river cities opened. Hong Kong investments spread inland. 1993: Chinese companies listed in Hong Kong tap funds from around the world. Return to main story

Updated June 15, 1997 by bwwebmaster
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