News Analysis: More competitive Hong Kong sharpens appeal to foreign firms

HONG KONG, July 12 (Xinhua) -- Multinational firms are looking at Hong Kong for more opportunities as Hong Kong's economy sees steady upturn on the back of policy efforts to improve business environment and strengthen connectivity with the Chinese mainland market.

Invest Hong Kong announced earlier this month that it assisted 322 companies to set up or expand operations in Hong Kong during the first six months of 2024, of which 150 are from the mainland. The rest are from overseas economies like the United States, Britain, Singapore and France.

This shows that Hong Kong is one of Asia's most popular international financial and commercial hubs in the eyes of global investors, said Alpha Lau, Invest Hong Kong's director-general of investment promotion.

Many multinationals have recently made or expanded footprints in Hong Kong with hopes to seize business opportunities in the mainland and branch out to other Asian markets. Switzerland-based private markets investment management firm Partners Group opened an office in Hong Kong in June.

Hong Kong's proximity to the Chinese mainland will give us access to distribution deals in greater China and open up investment possibilities, said Henry Chiu, head of the Hong Kong office. Hong Kong's status as one of the world's top wealth management centers and its massive talent pool will also help the company extend outreach in Asia.

Scotch brand The Macallan launched its first flagship retail concept store in Hong Kong early June as the first of a series of 22 new openings scheduled through 2024 across the globe, according to Jaime Martin Chocano, the managing director of North Asia of Edrington, The Macallan's parent company.

"Hong Kong is the ultimate luxury destination for a lot of people across the world. This is a long-term investment for the brand, and it comes with historical roots as Hong Kong is the first city where we introduced The Macallan to Asia many years ago," he said.

Hong Kong's aviation and retail industries enjoy growth potential, said Arnold Cheng, director of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area of John Swire & Sons (China) Limited. He also believes that tourism will receive a lift from a slew of new policies.

Since May 27, eight more Chinese mainland cities are eligible to issue individual travel endorsements for trips to Hong Kong and Macao Special Administrative Regions, bringing the total number of cities to 59. The duty-free limit shopping quota for mainland visitors to Hong Kong and Macao was increased from 5,000 yuan (about 689 U.S. dollars) to 12,000 yuan (about 1,651 dollars) from July 1.

Strengthened connectivity with the mainland market also benefits the asset management sector. The improved cross-boundary Wealth Management Connect Scheme in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area as well as efforts to enhance the mutual recognition of funds made Hong Kong more attractive as a market, said Martin Lau, chief executive officer of trust services and insurance of Principal Hong Kong.

"Hong Kong maintains its long-term advantages like a transparent regulatory environment, a very competitive tax regime and top-notch professional services and talents. We're optimistic about our growth in Hong Kong," Lau said, citing healthy investment flows and the growing number of family offices in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong climbed two places to rank fifth in the latest World Competitiveness Yearbook 2024 published by the International Institute for Management Development, a business school headquartered in Switzerland. The city ranks in the top three under the "Government efficiency" metric, and is among the top 10 globally in terms of "Business efficiency" and "Infrastructure".