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China has been the scenario of political, social and economic turmoil during the past decade. The handover of Hong Kong to China on June 1997, after over a century and a half of British colonial rule, as well as China’s recent accession to the World Trade Organization are milestones in our era. They have also been subject of much polemic and controversy; authors and experts from multiple disciplines have rushed to make pessimistic predictions. The transition proved to be a smooth one (Tang, 1999), against all predictions; now, the question is whether the WTO membership will bring any surprises. There is still anxiety over Hong Kong’s future under the Chinese rule; a world audience follows closely the island’s events with concern. Contrary to most predictions, Hong Kong’s most serious post-handover problems have been economic and social rather than political (Tang, 1999). Both the pre-handover doomsayers’ prediction of lost freedom under Beijing’s repression and the optimal forecast of post-1997 economic prosperity have been wide off the mark (Hsiung, 2000). Since the reversion, Hong Kong has been confronting economic recession, rising unemployment, the collapse of the real estate and stock markets and serious disrupti