Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Algernon Yau on Thursday criticised the United States for imposing an additional 10 percent tariff on all Chinese imports – which also covers goods from Hong Kong – and called on the Trump administration to rectify the situation as soon as possible.

Yau also said higher US tariffs won't have much of an impact on the SAR, citing 2023 figures showing HK$6.1 billion worth of exports to the US represented only about 0.1 percent of the city's total exports.

“We can see that the impact on Hong Kong should not be huge," the commerce minister told an RTHK programme.

"But most importantly, the US ignored the fact that Hong Kong is a separate customs territory as stated in Article 116 of the Basic Law and recognised by the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

"The move by the US is very unreasonable and ignores the rules of an international organisation."

Yau also said Hong Kong merchants have diversified supply chains and manufacturing locations, in view of the shift in the geopolitical landscape and international trade.

China has filed a complaint with the WTO over the tariffs, saying the actions by Washington are protectionist and break the trade body's rules.

Speaking on RTHK’s Hong Kong Today programme, Tim Huxley, chairman of Mandarin Shipping, said the tariffs won't have a strong negative impact on the local shipping industry.

"Hong Kong... is a significant shipowning centre, but it's also very much driven by shipping services. There’s a lot more to Hong Kong shipping than the container port, which is important. But when Hong Kong-owned ships are trading all over the world, they're carrying bulk cargoes, oil, as well as containers. So that will not have a huge impact.

"Hong Kong, remember, is very much now a service-driven economy... Maritime lawyers, bankers, insurance brokers, all these are the services that go on to make the shipping industry a large contributor to Hong Kong's economy," Huxley said.