Financial Secretary Paul Chan said on Monday the government is maintaining its forecast for Hong Kong's GDP growth at two to three percent for the year amid a slight easing in international trade tensions.

Speaking in a Legislative Council panel meeting, he said the Hong Kong economy expanded solidly in the first quarter, with GDP increasing by 3.1 percent year on year.

External trade, one of the driving forces of economic growth, saw an outstanding performance, with the total exports of goods growing 8.4 percent.

Chan said the government's GDP growth forecast for the year remains the same as that announced in his Budget.

Some legislators expressed concerns over slowing consumption among tourists and local residents, with Liberal Party lawmaker Michael Lee asking if the authorities have considered introducing policies to boost consumption.

Chan said a stable property market will help boost spending confidence.

"We have to stabilise the property market, and if the stock market has a good performance as well, then the overall asset market will be stable, and people will feel at ease," he said.

"The employment situation is not bad, and employment earnings have grown.

"People will be more willing to spend their money."

Chan added that the non-residential property market has remained generally weak, with trading activities showing a mixed performance and also declines in prices and rentals.

He said the government has paused the sale of commercial land in the past as well as the current fiscal year, but it still takes time for the market to digest the supply of non-residential land sold in the past and the projects that have already been built.