Hong Kong’s “Super-Connector” Role in Managing Global Clothing Supply Chains Under the Belt and Road Initiative: An Extended Gravity Model Analysis

Is Hong Kong best suited for the “super-connector” role in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), forging stronger links among partnering countries to deepen multilateral economic cooperation? Taking clothing industry as a case in point, this study examines how Hong Kong can play that role by leveraging its strengths to enhance sustainable clothing trade and economic development of some Belt and Road (B&R) countries in Asia. This study applies an extended gravity model to analyse clothing exports from Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam to Hong Kong from 2000 to 2017. The panel data regression result shows that among the 11 factors examined in the model, logistics performance of exporting countries is the most influential predictor of bilateral clothing trade, whereas wages and supply of female labour have relatively lower predictive power than the value-adding factor. Serving as middlemen connecting developing countries to global clothing markets, Hong Kong clothing companies would benefit from investing in the B&R countries, transferring technology to them and trading with them. Through better coordination of production and export logistics and provision of high value-added services such as new product and process development for clothing supply chains, Hong Kong companies could contribute to the sustainable development of B&R economies.