Govt urged to slash spirits tax to 20 percent
Hong Kong should slash taxes on strong alcohol to 20 percent so mainland companies can use the city as a platform to take traditional Chinese liquor to the world, industry leaders said on Friday.  The SAR hasn't imposed duty on wine since 2008, but there's a 100 percent levy on liquor with an alcohol strength of more than 30 percent. Raymond Luk, from the Hong Kong General Chamber of Wine and Spirits, said the tax doesn't bring in a lot of revenue.  "We don't think lowering the spirits tax will give a very huge impact to the general government revenue. On the other hand, we think that lowering tax will strengthen the bilateral trade between mainland China and Hong Kong, and also make Hong Kong a very good platform for Chinese baijiu to extend the trade to the international market," Luk said.  Baijiu, which translates as "white alcohol", typically has an alcohol content of between 40 and 60 percent. Jojo So, the chamber’s president, brushed aside suggestions that lowering the duty would encourage more alcohol consumption.  Citing government data, she said the average alcohol consumption per capita of Hong Kong stood at 2.8 litres in 2008 when the government scrapped the wine tax, and the figure dropped to less than 2.3 litres last year.  Liberal Party lawmaker Peter Shiu, meanwhile, said lowering the levy could benefit the city through increased tourism and spending.