In addition, the increased number of visitors from the mainland to Hong Kong, supported by deregulation in the mainland, gave renewed vigor to the tourism industry, severely hit by SARS, thereby strengthening ties between Hong Kong and the mainland. Last but not least, let me highlight once again Hong Kong's current rapid growth, with closer economic ties with the mainland.
Thus, it is not surprising that the most publicly criticized sectors, in particular chemicals and mining, should display the strongest growth in the use of NFR. Pressure from competitors, pressure from NGOs, responding to pressure from financial industry etc. seem to be the other drivers behind NFR. 8.