Exporters maintain optimism amidst tariff pressures

Most Hong Kong traders expressed a positive profit outlook.

Confidence amongst Hong Kong exporters rose moderately in Q1 2025, despite sizable tariff hikes imposed by the U.S. on its global trading partners, according to the latest HKTDC Export Confidence Index.

In specific terms, the current performance index rose by 1.8 points to 52.1, whilst the expectation index edged up 1.0 point to 51.0, with both readings staying above the watermark level of 50.

Notably, 75.4% of the traders surveyed were confident their net profit margins would either increase or remain stable in 2025, up from 72.1% in Q4 2024.

The HKTDC has slightly adjusted its 2025 Hong Kong export growth forecast from 4% to 3%, amid the likely impact of a series of higher tariffs imposed by the U.S. in the past two months.

“While export business may be growing at a moderately slower rate than had been initially anticipated, there are still many reasons to be optimistic. This is partly down to the agility and flexibility many Hong Kong exporters have demonstrated in terms of strategies for future-proofing their business activities,” Irina Fan, director of HKTDC Research, said.

In terms of market prospects, the current performance figure fell 3.1 points quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) to 47.8, dipping below the watermark level of 50 for the first time in 12 months.

General findings also revealed that the jewellery industry was the most upbeat sector in terms of current performance at 53.1 points, followed by electronics (52.3) and timepieces (51.2).

In terms of expectation, jewellery (54.4), equipment/materials (52.6), and timepiece (51.1) exporters were most optimistic about their likely future performance.

HKTDC surveyed over 500 Hong Kong traders from six major industry sectors.