Hong Kong-Middle East Trade Surges 35% as Gulf Capital Shifts Toward Asia, Says Paul Chan

Capital from the Gulf region is increasingly flowing into Asia, according to Hong Kong’s Financial Secretary Paul Chan, with bilateral trade between the city and the Middle East jumping 35 percent in the first five months of the year.

In his weekly blog on Sunday, Chan noted that Hong Kong and the Middle East have strengthened ties across the economy, trade, finance, innovation and technology, and culture in recent years.

While trade between the Gulf Arab states and Hong Kong grew about 5 percent last year, it surged 35 percent year-on-year during the January-to-May period, he added.

Chan highlighted that bilateral trade with the United Arab Emirates alone soared more than 52 percent over the same span.

“Gulf sovereign wealth funds previously invested mainly in American and European markets. However, of the tens of billions of dollars they allocated globally last year, about 40 percent flowed into Asia,” he said.

“This reflects a clear shift in their asset allocation, with a diversified investment strategy gradually taking shape.”

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