Treasury secretary highlights HK’s role as ‘superconnector’
City remains magnet for global business, talent and investment, Hui says on New York visit
Treasury chief Christopher Hui Ching-yu is visiting New York to promote Hong Kong’s role as a superconnector linking China and the United States.
The secretary for financial services and the treasury was set to meet Michael Bloomberg, founder of financial media company Bloomberg and former New York City mayor, yesterday.
Hui was also expected to join a round-table discussion regarding Hong Kong’s fintech developments, speak at a lunch co-hosted by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, New York, and the Asia Society, and meet leaders of financial institutions.
“We are a leading international asset and wealth management hub in Asia, managing close to US$4 trillion in assets at the end of 2022, with two-thirds sourced from non-Hong Kong investors,” Hui said in an address on Monday night to the Hong Kong community in New York.
Hong Kong remained a magnet for global business, investment and talent, he said, adding the city was home to more than 12,500 ultra-high-networth individuals, surpassing any other city globally, as well as 2,700 single-family offices.
Hui began his trip by meeting Paul Gruenwald, global chief economist at S&P Global Ratings, on Monday. During the meeting, he elaborated on the measures Hong Kong had taken to maintain its robust financial system and fiscal condition.
He also met John Williams, president and CEO of the New York Federal Reserve, to discuss global economic trends and interest rates.
In a later conversation with Stephen Orlins, president of the National Committee on United States-China Relations, Hui highlighted the superconnector and “super value-adder” role played by Hong Kong in furthering China’s development.
In his address to New York’s Hong Kong community, the treasury chief pointed to signs suggesting that Hong Kong’s economy was recovering.
For example, the city’s real gross domestic product expanded by 3.2 per cent last year and was expected to grow by a further 2.5 to 3.5 per cent in real terms for the full year of 2024.
Its air passenger traffic has also rebounded to 80 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.
Over the past year, Hong Kong had recorded 9,000 companies with parent firms beyond its borders, marking a recovery to pre-pandemic levels, Hui said.
The city also managed to attract more than 50 “strategic, high-powered” companies from around the world, which will
We are a leading international asset and wealth management hub in Asia TREASURY CHIEF CHRISTOPHER HUI
invest more than HK$40 billion in Hong Kong over the coming years and create more than 13,000 jobs.
During his address, Hui also mentioned the Wealth for Good in Hong Kong Summit, which was organised by the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau last month and attended by global family offices and asset owners.
“We were truly honoured to have the presence of many internationally renowned speakers for the summit,” he said.