Hong Kong expects 3.2% growth this year, seeks to maintain momentum
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FILE PHOTO: Tourists relax on the waterfront in front of Victoria Harbour, with the iconic skyline buildings as a backdrop, in Hong Kong, China June 28, 2023. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu/File Photo
SHANGHAI, Dec 28 (Reuters) - Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan raised his 2025 economic growth forecast to 3.2% on Sunday, saying the city would bolster its role as a financial centre, innovation hub and trade centre to maintain the momentum.
In February, Chan had forecast growth of between 2% and 3%.
Hong Kong, the world's biggest venue for initial public offerings this year, will lure more listings from companies in areas such as Southeast Asia and the Middle East and will actively promote internationalisation of China's yuan currency, Chan said in a blog post.
The city will also focus on developing artificial intelligence and biotech to lead the global race in technology and will strengthen its role as a trade hub by helping more Chinese companies expand overseas, he said.
"Looking into next year, Hong Kong's economy is expected to keep the good trend of growth," Chan said. "Finance, tech innovation and trade will be Hong Kong's key engines of growth as the city actively embraces China's development strategy."
Hong Kong has one of the world's best-performing stock markets this year, with the Hang Seng Index up 30%.
Resilient exports, brisk fixed-asset investment and recovering consumption have helped Hong Kong's growth beat forecast, Chan said.
To bolster its status as a financial centre, Hong Kong will strengthen the competitiveness of its stock market and develop areas including bonds, money market, fintech, commodities and gold trading, he said.
In terms of innovation, Hong Kong will develop AI into a "core industry", as the technology will define economies' competitiveness and reshape the global economic landscape, he said.
The city is also establishing a centre for cross-border supply chain management and trade finance, to better help Chinese companies expand offshore, Chan said.
(Reporting by Shanghai newsroom; Editing by William Mallard)
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