Hong Kong's Economic Future Dims

 

[SCMP] Etude's exit from Hong Kong in April 24 was not a surprise given AmorePacific's decision to redirect their attention to North America and Europe. But it is one of many businesses leaving, with many focusing their attention on Singapore and other SEA countries.

Singapore's Atome's left Hong Kong March 31 “due to the unpredictable and depressed macro environment" and is "refocusing our resources on growing our core business in Southeast Asia."

Hong Kong's own Sasa is looking to return to Singapore and opening more stores in Malaysia while only "targeting a handful of new stores in 2023 after shutting dozens during the pandemic as doubts remain that [Hong Kong] will return to its pre-Covid-19 heights as a shopping hub." [The Straits Times]

FedEx is moving their Asia Pacific headquarters from Hong Kong to Singapore in September, "the latest blow to the city’s reputation as a global logistics hub." This follows as "the number of overseas firms with regional headquarters in Hong Kong has declined yearly since 2019, from 1,541 in 2019 to 1,411 in 2022." [HKFP]

Sebastien Lai, son of the jailed-Apple Daily founder, Jimmy Lai, continues to warn foreign companies to stay away. "It is not business as usual in Hong Kong...The cost of business in Hong Kong has gone up significantly as a result of these institutions being broken down," Lai also said, referring to the rule of law and justice system. [Nikkei]

This follows as Fortune reported in September of 2022 that Singapore had surpassed Hong Kong as Asia's top financial center.