Hong Kong SAR, China: Technicians in R&D (per million people)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2018, Hong Kong SAR, China's technicians in R&D (per million people) fell 82.21 on 2017 (from 398.01 to 315.8).

Across the 19 yearly changes before that (1999 to 2017), the average change was +9.32 and a typical year strayed about 70.23 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.3 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 120.37 in 2006 and the biggest yearly fall was 100.94 in 2013. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2009 to 2018 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains less than 1% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2018, Hong Kong SAR, China had the 9th highest value of the 22 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Hong Kong SAR, China in the 2018 ranking

• Serbia — 6th of 22: 412.03
• Argentina — 7th of 22: 398.05
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 8th of 22: 369.56
• Malaysia — 10th of 22: 233.44
• Macao SAR, China — 11th of 22: 182.46
• Ukraine — 12th of 22: 150.14

What this measures

The number of technicians participated in Research & Development (R&D), expressed as per million. Technicians and equivalent staff are people who perform scientific and technical tasks involving the application of concepts and operational methods, normally under the supervision of researchers. R&D covers basic research, applied research, and experimental development.

Limitations: Estimates of the resources allocated to R&D are affected by national characteristics such as the periodicity and coverage of national R&D surveys across institutional sectors and industries; and the use of different sampling and estimation methods. R&D typically involves a few large performers, hence R&D surveys use various techniques to maintain up-to-date registers of known performers, while attempting to identify new or occasional performers.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 21 values

Technicians in R&D (per million people) in nearby economies

• Japan — 524.29 (2018)
• Korea, Rep. — 1,311 (2018)
• Macao SAR, China — 182.46 (2018)
• Malaysia — 233.44 (2018)
• New Zealand — 1,276 (2017)
• Singapore — 377.37 (2017)
• Thailand — 296.94 (2017)

More infrastructure data for Hong Kong SAR, China

• Fixed telephone subscriptions — 3.31 million (2024)
• Fixed telephone subscriptions (per 100 people) — 44.57 (2024)
• Mobile cellular subscriptions — 27.05 million (2024)
• Mobile cellular subscriptions (per 100 people) — 364.85 (2024)
• Patent applications, nonresidents — 15,445 (2024)
• Patent applications, residents — 495 (2024)
• Individuals using the Internet (% of population) — 95.76% (2024)
• Medium and high-tech exports (% manufactured exports) — 38.75% (2024)
• Air transport, registered carrier departures worldwide

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Hong Kong SAR, China's technicians in R&D (per million people)?

315.8 in 2018, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1998?

It is up 42.91% from 220.98 in 1998 (1.8% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 466.92 in 2006 and the lowest 174.35 in 2001.

How does Hong Kong SAR, China rank?

9th highest of 22 economies with data for 2018.

Is the latest change in technicians in R&D (per million people) unusual for Hong Kong SAR, China?

In 2018, Hong Kong SAR, China's technicians in R&D (per million people) fell 82.21 on 2017 (from 398.01 to 315.8). Across the 19 yearly changes before that (1999 to 2017), the average change was +9.32 and a typical year strayed about 70.23 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.3 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SP.POP.TECH.RD.P6, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: UNESCO Institute of Statistics (UIS), UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), uri: http://uis.unesco.org, note: Data as of March 2021, publisher: UNESCO Institute of Statistics (UIS) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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