HONG KONG CONNECT



	The Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Mr John Lee, delivered his fourth annual Policy Address, entitled “Deepening Reforms for Our People, Leveraging Our Strengths for a Brighter Future” on 17 September, setting out a range of initiatives to explore new growth areas, expand trade markets and frontiers, deepen international exchanges and co-operation, and enhance regional collaboration to foster economic growth and development. The following are some of the major initiatives:

	Accelerating the development of Northern Metropolis The Northern Metropolis, a strategic development area of about one-third of the total land area of Hong Kong with substantial economic potential, remains a central priority for the current-term Government. To accelerate its development, the Chief Executive will chair the newly established Committee on Development of the Northern Metropolis. Administrative workflows will be streamlined, unnecessary barriers removed, and dedicated legislation introduced to empower the Government with simplified statutory procedures, ensuring more effective and timely progress in driving this transformative initiative. Deepening reform and developing industries Industries are the cornerstone of economic development. A key highlight of the 2025 Policy Address is the formulation of preferential policy packages, including land grants, land premiums, financial subsidies, and tax incentives, to attract high value-added industries and high-potential enterprises to establish in Hong Kong. The Office for Attracting Strategic Enterprises (OASES) and Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK) can flexibly apply these policy packages during negotiations with enterprises on settlement details, while the Government will explore a more flexible mechanism for introducing tax incentives that comply with international standards. The Policy Address also prioritises new industrialisation, such as aircraft recycling and new energy, alongside the promotion of life and health technology. Initiatives include the establishment of the Hong Kong Centre for Medical Products Regulation and the Office for Introducing Innovative Drugs and Medical Devices, to facilitate the entry of innovative pharmaceuticals into the Mainland and international markets. At the same time, the Government will step up efforts to promote the development of the AI and data science industries, expanding applications in both government services and business operations. “Bringing in and Going Global”: Hong Kong as a platform for overseas expansion Alongside industry development and reform, the 2025 Policy Address introduces new initiatives to position Hong Kong as a platform for international business expansion. Leveraging Hong Kong’s role as an export platform, the Government will help unlock new areas of economic growth. Mainland enterprises going global are encouraged to establish Corporate Treasury Centres and regional headquarters in Hong Kong for cross-boundary settlement, remittance, financing and related functions. They can also tap Hong Kong’s professional high value-added supply chain services in fields such as accounting and law to help them explore overseas markets. In addition, they can leverage Hong Kong’s strengths in marketing to connect with global buyers and build international brands. To strengthen support, a one-stop platform will be established by mobilising Hong Kong’s overseas and Mainland offices, including economic and trade offices, as well as those under InvestHK and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. A new Task Force on Supporting Mainland Enterprises in Going Global (GoGlobal Task Force) will also be set up to encourage Mainland enterprises to utilise Hong Kong as a springboard for overseas expansion and to formulate tailored proposals for their global ventures. Consolidating Hong Kong’s status as an international hub Backed by strong national support and a high degree of global connectivity, Hong Kong is recognised worldwide as an international centre in finance, trade and shipping, innovation and technology (I&T), as well as in aviation, legal services and dispute resolution. The 2025 Policy Address outlines measures to further consolidate Hong Kong’s premier status by leveraging its institutional strengths and expanding its global reach. On finance, the Government will expedite the building of an international gold trading market by supporting more institutions to establish gold storage facilities in Hong Kong, with a target gold storing capacity of over 2 000 tonnes in three years, propelling Hong Kong into a regional gold reserve hub. The Government will also encourage gold traders to set up or expand refineries in Hong Kong, establish a central clearing system for gold in Hong Kong and offer a greater variety of gold investment vehicles. Regarding trading, the Government will continue to foster the development of a commodity trading ecosystem in Hong Kong and will set up the Strategic Committee on Commodities, with the aim of strengthening the top-down design and long-term strategy of commodity policy. The process of international commodity trading will be enhanced through financial innovation. The Government will also deepen connections with the Guangzhou Futures Exchange and other commodity markets in the Mainland. On I&T development, the 2025 Policy Address reinforces Hong Kong’s role as an international I&T centre by expediting the third InnoHK research cluster, which will focus on sustainable development, energy, advanced manufacturing and materials. Funding support will be broadened through measures such as relaxing thresholds for the New Industrialisation Acceleration Scheme to encourage more smart production facilities, and the launch of a new I&T Industry-Oriented Fund in 2026-27 to channel market capital into emerging industries of strategic importance. To meet growing demand for land supply for I&T use, the Government will accelerate the development of Lok Ma Chau Loop and provide around 210 hectares in the San Tin Technopole. We will also facilitate secure and compliant cross-boundary flow of Mainland data to Hong Kong for research and innovation purposes. At the same time, Hong Kong will expand the scale and influence of I&T events such as the World Internet Conference Asia-Pacific Summit and InnoEX, while strengthening collaboration with international and regional organisations, including the International Organization for Standardization. Hong Kong is striving to become the world's largest cross-boundary wealth management centre in the next few years. To support this goal, the New Capital Investment Entrant Scheme will be enhanced: currently requiring applicants to invest at least HK$30 million in Hong Kong, the scheme will now raise the maximum amount of investment to be counted from HK$10 million to HK$15 million for non-residential property purchases, with no transaction price threshold. For residential property, the maximum investment to be counted will remain capped at HK$10 million, but the transaction price threshold will be lowered from HK$50 million to HK$30 million. Hong Kong will also deepen its position as a leading global arts trading centre, currently ranked among the world’s top three, by building a premium arts ecosystem at the Airport City. This includes arts studios, galleries, and dealers under one roof, supported by large-scale storage and related facilities. The Government will strengthen ties with Art Basel and commission studies on taxation, financing, talent and other areas to further boost Hong Kong’s competitiveness in arts trading. Developing a talent pool and building an international education hub Consolidating Hong Kong’s hub status also hinges on attracting and nurturing world-class talent. The 2025 Policy Address sets out plans to strengthen Hong Kong’s talent pool and further develop its role as an international education hub. Since the implementation of an array of new talent admission policies by the current-term Government, over 230 000 people have come to Hong Kong for work and development, with Hong Kong’s global talent ranking rising 12 places in two years to fourth worldwide and first in the Asia Pacific region. The Government will continue to advance talent policies to ensure our long-term competitiveness and drive sustained economic growth. The integrated development of education, technology and talent is identified as a foundational pillar for Hong Kong’s future. To attract international teaching and research talents as well as students, the Education Bureau will establish the Task Force on Study in Hong Kong. The Task Force will step up global promotion, including through a large-scale campaign, “Hong Kong: Your World‑class Campus”, showcasing Hong Kong’s quality resources in areas such as academic studies, scientific research and international co‑operation. To strengthen Hong Kong’s position as an international education hub, restrictions on self-financing students will also be relaxed. Starting from the 2026/27 academic year, the enrolment ceiling for self-financing non-local students of each funded post-secondary institution will be raised from the level currently equivalent to 40% of local student places to 50%; and the over-enrolment ceiling of self-financing places of funded research postgraduate programmes will be increased from 100% to 120%. “Tourism is Everywhere” Tourism remains a key driver of Hong Kong’s global image and economic vitality. As of August this year, the overall visitor arrivals had reached 33.2 million, a significant increase of 12% over the same period last year. Under the motif of “tourism is everywhere”, the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau will enhance the development of tourism products and initiatives with local and international characteristics. The Government will also actively explore new visitor sources, streamline arrival arrangements, enhance the immigration experience, and develop niche sectors such as the yacht economy. Mega events will be strategically leveraged to elevate the visitor experience. By interweaving cultural festivals, signature tourism projects and international events, the Government aims to encourage visitors to extend their stay, return for repeat visits, promoting the development of “mega events + tourism”.

	For a comprehensive overview of the Chief Executive’s 2025 Policy Address and additional resources, please find the full document, supplement, highlights leaflets and relevant press release of the 2025 Policy Address at the hyperlinks.