HONG KONG, (Reuters) – The following highlights are from Hong Kong’s Budget for the 2022/23 Fiscal Year that began in April.

Paul Chan, the Financial Secretary presented Wednesday’s budget.

KEY FIGURES

* Counter-cyclical measures will total over HK$170 billion ($21.79 billion), to boost economy by about three percentage points

* Says 2021 GDP growth at 6.4%

* Forecasts 2022 GDP growth between 2 and 3.5%

* Forecasts 2022 headline inflation at 2.1%

* Forecasts 2022 underlying inflation at 2%

* Forecasts average growth rate of 3% per annum in real terms from 2023-2026

* Q4 GDP growth at 4.8% year-on-year

* Q4 GDP growth at 0.2% quarter-on-quarter

* Says economic activities, particularly the consumption-related sectors, will continue to be under intense pressure

* Says the economic performance in the first quarter is not optimistic

MEASURES:

* Says to reduce salaries tax payable by 100%, capped at HK$10,000

* Says to issue HK$10,000 electronic consumer voucher for residents 18 and over

* Says to support enterprises, will reduce profit tax for the year of assessment 2021/22 by 100%, subject to a ceiling of HK$10,000

* To waive business registration fees for 2022-23

* To earmark HK$13.2 billion to create time-limited jobs in public and private sectors to ease the unemployment situation

($1 = 7.8029 Hong Kong dollars)