CK Group's Li says Hong Kong needs to safeguard financial hub status

CK Asset Holdings

21/03/2024 12:24

HONG KONG, March 21 (Reuters) - The Hong Kong government
needs to protect the city's international financial hub status
after years of upheaval, chairman of conglomerate CK Group
Victor Li said on Thursday.
    Li was speaking after his property company CK Asset
 1113.HK , one of Hong Kong's biggest developers, reported a 10%
decline in net profit from continuing operations last year.
    Asked about his views on the city's economy at an earnings
conference, Li said - after a sigh - that the people of Hong
Kong had gone through several stress tests since 2019, when the
city was roiled by anti-government protests, followed by the
pandemic and now a struggling economy. 
    "It will depend on the Hong Kong government how they deal
with (the economy); my thinking is Hong Kong has to keep its
international financial hub status .... It was hard earned for
Hong Kong and it cannot lose it."
    The Hong Kong government is trying to reinvigorate the
appeal of the city after Beijing's imposition of a sweeping
national security law in 2020 and three years of COVID lockdowns
prompted an exodus of people from Hong Kong, taking a toll on
its reputation and economy.
    Sino-U.S. tensions, China's slowing economy and a new
national security law to take effect this week are piling
additional challenges on Hong Kong, hurting its traditional role
as a gateway between the West and the mainland, diplomats and
business executives have said.
    The Hong Kong government has said the city remains an
attractive destination for foreign investments. 
    Li, the son of billionaire Li Ka-Shing, brushed off
suggestions the group has not been making big investments in
Hong Kong recently, saying it had bought eight property projects
in the last three years. 
    "Real estate projects all look at margins; if their margins
are lower than those of other business, the capital needs to go
to sectors with higher returns."
    He said all the negative news impacting the city's property
prices, including interest rate hikes and additional stamp
duties, had passed and so there was a greater likelihood of the
market going up. 

 (Reporting by Clare Jim
Editing by Mark Potter)
 ((clare.jim@thomsonreuters.com;))