London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 02, 2025

Hong Kong’s largest business lobby predicts further growth in 2022

Hong Kong’s largest business lobby predicts further growth in 2022

General Chamber of Commerce forecasts 2.8 per cent expansion next year after 6.3 per cent this year but says emerging Omicron variant could suppress recovery in tourism and hospitality industries.

Hong Kong’s largest business association expects the city’s economic recovery will continue into next year and predicts 2.8 per cent growth in gross domestic product, but warns the unfolding Omicron variant of the coronavirus presents fresh uncertainties.

George Leung Siu-kay, CEO of the 4,000-member Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce, said on Thursday it was difficult to tell how the heavily mutated variant would impact the economy. The organisation expected the city’s GDP would grow 6.3 per cent this year, close to the government’s forecast of 6.4 per cent, which would be highest since 2005 when 6.9 per cent expansion was recorded in 2005.

“Even the World Health Organization is unable to tell how rapidly Omicron will spread around the world and its mortality rate. So we will be watching closely in case the spread is quite severe and causes many countries’ borders to close down, then I think there’s a need to revise our economic forecast,” he said.

George Leung, chief executive officer of the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce.


Leung added that it was still unclear how cross- border travel would be affected, as Omicron was new. But he conceded the variant could take a further toll on Hong Kong’s already battered tourism and hospitality sectors given the city remained in near lockdown for the past 22 months.

The variant has caused countries like Japan, Israel, the United Kingdom, European Union and the United States to ban foreigners from entering. Non-residents from eight African countries are banned from coming to Hong Kong. The city has confirmed four Omicron cases so far.

Still, Hong Kong and Guangdong governments last week reached a deal to resume quarantine-free travel as soon as possible.

“[The mainland] is our biggest trading partner,” Leung said. “If our border can be resumed, there’s a lot of activities that can be resumed with the mainland … but we need to wait for quite a while, so that’s why we are not expecting a full resumption of economic flow in 2022.”

He revealed the findings of a survey the chamber conducted in July, which pointed to restricted cross-border travel remaining the top concern of businesses.

In another survey by the British Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong involving 152 respondents, or 15 per cent of its membership, companies said the city’s strict quarantine measures had caused challenges in maintaining headcount.

Almost half said some employees had decided to leave the company or Hong Kong altogether due to the quarantine restrictions, according to the survey conducted in October.

Almost 70 per cent said the current Covid-19 measures had affected talent acquisition and limited business growth, while more than half said they might relocate operations or lose employees if the current restrictions continued for another 12 months.

“The current situation is presenting real challenges. We understand the constraints that the Hong Kong government is under, but would urge it to explore other options that would allow an earlier relaxation of international travel,” said David Graham, executive director of BritCham.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
Nvidia Pledges Up to $100 Billion Investment in OpenAI to Power Massive AI Data Center Build-Out
U.S. Signals ‘Large and Forceful’ Support for Argentina Amid Market Turmoil
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
Vietnam Faces Up to $25 Billion Export Loss as U.S. Tariffs Bite
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Indonesia Court Upholds Military Law Amid Concerns Over Expanded Civilian Role
Larry Ellison, Michael Dell and Rupert Murdoch Join Trump-Backed Bid to Take Over TikTok
Trump and Musk Reunite Publicly for First Time Since Fallout at Kirk Memorial
Vietnam Closes 86 Million Untouched Bank Accounts Over Biometric ID Rules
×