Hong Kong wage hikes among Asia's lowest in 2016

Despite 4.5% average raises.

It has been noted that Hong Kongers will see some of the lowest “real” wage increases in Asia in 2016 despite 4.5 per cent average raises.

According to a release from ECA International, Hong Kongers will see their salaries increase by an average of 4.5 per cent again in 2016, according to the company's latest Salary Trends survey.

However, after inflation is taken into account, real wage increases will amount to 1.5 per cent on average in Hong Kong next year. This is the third lowest ‘real’ salary increase in the Asia region, only bettering Macau and Myanmar.

Here's more from ECA International:

“In spite of the shadow of current economic uncertainty looming over key industries in Hong Kong, companies are predicting that salaries will rise by similar amounts this year and next year, in both nominal and real terms,” said Lee Quane, Regional Director – Asia, ECA International.

"This reflects the need for companies to maintain relatively high rates of wage increases in order to continue to attract and retain talent, despite difficult economic circumstances.”

Pay rises in Mainland China are still considerably higher than in Hong Kong. Companies here are planning to award 8 per cent salary increases next year, which is marginally higher than the 7.8 per cent increases in 2015.

In terms of real wage increases, employees based in Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Shenzhen may all see a smaller wage increase compared with 2015, as inflation is expected to rise to 1.8 per cent in 2016, a 0.3 per cent increase from this year’s rates.

From a global perspective, staff in China are forecast to be the second best off in 2016: they can expect to see increases of 6.2 per cent in real terms. Despite its recent slowdown, China remains among the fastest-growing economies in the world with well-developed supply chains and cheap labour making it the primary destination for foreign investment in the developing world.