Foreign companies in Hong Kong up 9.9% to 9,040 in 2019

More than 1,500 operates their regional headquarters in the city.

The number of overseas and mainland Chinese companies in Hong Kong rose 9.9% to 9,040 in 2019 from 8,225 in 2017, according to the 2019 Annual Survey of Companies in Hong Kong with Parent Companies Located outside Hong Kong (SCoP).

The 9,040 companies comprised 1,541 operating as regional headquarters, 2,490 regional offices and 5,009 local offices.

In terms of jobs, the number of people engaged by the overseas and mainland companies reached 493,000, up by 11.3% compared to 443,000 in 2017.

Mainland China ranked first with 1,799 companies, followed by Japan (1,413), the United States (1,344), the United Kingdom (713) and Singapore (446).

By sector, import/export trade, wholesale and retail topped the list (4,181), followed by financing and banking (1,787) and professional, business and education services (1,373).

In a separate survey conducted by InvestHK, it was found that the number of startups in Hong Kong surged 42.8% to 3,184 from 2017. These startups engaged 12,478 persons, up by 97.4% compared to 2017 and spanned different business sectors, such as financial technology, e-commerce, supply chain management and logistics technology, as well as information, computer and technology.