 But GDP growth has so far this year been weaker than expected.  Inflation is at its highest since the mid-1990s.  But crude oil and other commodity prices have fallen.  At the same time, productivity has been lower, which has led to increased wage costs.   16  BIS Review 100/2008
After much careful study and  2  BIS central bankers’ speeches  planning for a year, the HKMA launched the Tracker Fund, an open-ended exchange-traded fund, in November 1999 and resold $ billion worth of stocks to 180,000 investors. We continued to recoup over $ billion in the next three years through the same mechanism. Ultimately, our market operation turned in a profit of nearly $ billion at prevailing stock prices at that time. 7. The experience of Hong Kong clearly shows that market failures do occur. In the example I have just outlined, market intervention by the HKMA proved to be bold and effective in securing the safety and soundness of Hong Kong’s monetary and financial system. It was, indeed, undertaken in a life-and-death but smokeless war on the financial front. Hong Kong prides itself on being one of the world’s freest and most open markets. Nevertheless, as a much smaller market compared with our American and European counterparts, Hong Kong could fall prey to global predators, resulting in market failures. If the markets were allowed to plunge in free fall, the entire financial system might face a total meltdown. It was at such a critical moment that the Hong Kong SAR Government was left with no other option than to take unprecedented action. Today, with 17 years behind us, Hong Kong remains a free and open market and an international financial centre as before, and any lingering doubt has vanished. After all, “actions speak louder than words”.