What does this research mean for the field?

The narrative of Hong Kong's economic development as a product of laissez-faire policies was actively constructed at the 1970 World Expo in response to international instability, rather than being a natural reflection of its history, and was subsequently appropriated to support neoclassical economic theories. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.CONTRADICTORY. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.CHALLENGES_CONSENSUS.

What question did this study set out to answer?

To examine the political, economic, and institutional motivations behind Hong Kong's pavilion at Expo '70 and analyze how its laissez-faire industrial narrative was deliberately constructed.

August 22, 2026China InformationOpen Access

Constructing a laissez-faire narrative of industrialization: Hong Kong at the 1970 World Expo

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Authors

MKMacabe KeliherSouthern Methodist University

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Implication

Historical analysis reveals how Hong Kong's 1970 World Expo pavilion actively constructed a laissez-faire narrative, highlighting its enduring influence on neoclassical economics.

Key Points

To examine the political, economic, and institutional motivations behind Hong Kong's pavilion at Expo '70 and analyze how its laissez-faire industrial narrative was deliberately constructed.
Conducted a historical and archival analysis drawing on local government and institutional records from Hong Kong.
Evaluated the geopolitical and economic pressures surrounding the 1970 World Exposition in Osaka to trace the origin of the territory's free-trade narrative.
Demonstrates that Hong Kong's laissez-faire narrative was an engineered response to an unstable international trade environment rather than a natural reflection of historical development.
Finds that neoclassical economists subsequently adopted and weaponized the Expo '70 narrative to model and promote global theories of market-led national development.

Cite This Study

Macabe Keliher (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a895f62ca7ade938187df24 https://doi.org/10.1177/0920203x261474044

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Implication

Historical analysis reveals how Hong Kong's 1970 World Expo pavilion actively constructed a laissez-faire narrative, highlighting its enduring influence on neoclassical economics.

Constructing a laissez-faire narrative of industrialization: Hong Kong at the 1970 World Expo

Discussion

Member takes

Implication

Key Points

Cite This Study

Constructing a laissez-faire narrative of industrialization: Hong Kong at the 1970 World Expo

Discussion

Member takes

Implication

Key Points

Cite This Study

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