A record high in overseas direct investment into Hong Kong last year demonstrates the city’s appeal as Asia’s leading business hub and underscores its irreplaceable role in promoting collaboration and creativity, government officials and businesspeople said on Monday.
InvestHK, a department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government responsible for attracting investment, announced that it assisted 539 overseas and Chinese mainland companies to open or expand their businesses in the city during 2024. The figure represents a year-on-year increase of over 41 percent.
These companies will bring HK$67.7 billion ($8.7 billion) in investment to the city, which also represents a new record and a nearly 10 percent increase from 2023. They are expected to create 6,864 job opportunities during their first year of operation, a growth of more than 67 percent compared with the previous year.
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Around half of the companies come from the mainland, followed by the United States, France, the United Kingdom, and Singapore. The number of businesses from countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative — a China-initiated infrastructure project — rose by 3 percent on a yearly basis to 66.
Among these companies, 120, or about 22 percent, are in the innovation and technology sector. This is followed by financial services and fintech, family offices, tourism and hospitality, and business and professional services.
Alpha Lau Hai-suen, director-general of investment promotion, said, the record results achieved despite a complex and ever-changing global economic environment demonstrate Hong Kong’s “resilience and adaptability”. They also reflect “businesses’ strong confidence in the city as their preferred base to expand into the Asian market”, she added.
In March, China Mobile Communications Group set up its corporate treasury center and an innovation research institute in Hong Kong with the assistance of InvestHK.
Chinese mainland’s largest coffee chain by store count, Luckin Coffee, opened five stores in Hong Kong in December. Earlier last year, Korea-based AI investment solution company, Qraft Technologies, upgraded its regional office in the city to a regional headquarters, with the aim of leveraging Hong Kong’s financial system to expand globally.
Lau said InvestHK will encourage these businesses to grow their operations in Hong Kong this year, in areas such as research and development, treasury management, and procurement, as well as to set up regional headquarters and harness the city’s financial strengths to raise capital.
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She also emphasized that InvestHK will prioritize introducing businesses that can deliver substantial economic benefits and high-quality investments for Hong Kong. Besides strengthening its promotion efforts in emerging markets, Lau said the agency will introduce emerging industries from traditional markets.
“Located in the heart of Asia, Hong Kong serves as a gateway to the mainland and other Asia-Pacific markets. Its geographical position allows us to easily connect with key stakeholders across the region,” said Mary Tse, Hong Kong office head of Taboola, a US-headquartered advertising company.
Tse added that Hong Kong’s diverse culture is conducive to collaboration and creativity, and has helped her office bring together local, mainland and Taiwan professionals.
Regarding concerns that there might be uncertainty in US-China relations under the incoming Donald Trump administration, Lau said last year’s figures showed that US companies are still an important source of foreign investment in Hong Kong.
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This reflects that business leaders are pragmatic, and know there are great growth opportunities in China and the rest of Asia, Lau said. US firms aiming to seize these opportunities will maintain their presence in Hong Kong to use the city as a springboard for market expansion, she added.
The New Capital Investment Entrant Scheme whose financial requirements assessment is overseen by InvestHK had received more than 800 applications from global investors by the end of last year since its launch in March, and is projected to bring HK$24 billion in investment to Hong Kong. Earlier this month, the SAR government announced it would ease the investment-attraction program’s threshold from this March. Lau said this has led to a noticeable uptick in inquiries and she believes there will be more applications to come.
