Wages in Hong Kong jumped by 3-5% in 2015

2016 salaries will also rise.

Global professional services recruiter Morgan McKinley has reported overall salary growth in the range of 3-5% in Hong Kong in 2015.

According to a release from Morgan McKinley, this finding is based on its latest Salary Guide, also with recruitment slowing in the wake of the China stock market fall in the second half of the year and the Chinese government’s anti-corruption measures.

Despite this, salaries for 2016 are expected to rise on average of 5-8% for internal roles and between 10-20% for external moves. Niche skills and local languages in particular sectors will command a higher reward.

Here's more from Morgan McKinley:

Salaries are likely to grow at a similar rate in 2016, or slightly higher, but candidates with highly sought-after skills can command increases of 15% and above if making a move. The HKMA’s efforts to bring local financial regulations into line with international standards (such as Dodd Frank, FATCA and Solvency II) has increased demand for compliance, regulatory and risk specialists in most areas of financial services and accounting and finance.

This will require some international hiring but fluency in both Mandarin and English, and in some cases also Korean, significantly add to a professional’s marketability and are essential for many roles. Other hot growth areas include the newer IT disciplines such as analytics and mobile apps, together with digital marketing, where Hong Kong needs to catch up with trends in the United States and Western Europe.

While we have seen a slight shift in the gender balance, with more women moving up to more senior positions in areas such as company finance, some sectors such as investment banking remain male-dominated, often because of long working hours and a lack of child-friendly employment practices.

“In many areas of business, the offshoring trend has slowed and the demand in Hong Kong itself is for quality over quantity. In disciplines such as accounting and finance that means solid qualifications, whereas in others, such as sales and marketing and HR, the emphasis is on experience. Languages and softer skills are becoming more and more important across the board. While salaries are stabilising for those staying in their current roles, as many organisations will remain cautious and cost-conscious, we expect to see fierce competition for top talent in a number of sectors and disciplines in 2016,” says Richie Holliday, COO Asia-Pacific Morgan McKinley.