Financial Secretary Visits Qatar to Strengthen Cooperation and Explore Investment Opportunities

FS begins visit to Qatar

The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, arrived in Doha, Qatar, yesterday (September 27, Doha time) to begin his visit there. He met respectively with the President and Chair of the Board of Directors of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), Ms Zou Jiayi; Qatar's Minister of Finance, H.E. Ali bin Ahmed Al Kuwari; and a number of political, business, financial, investment and corporate leaders in Qatar to exchange views on deepening co-operation.

During his meeting with Ms Zou, Mr Chan had an in-depth exchange on issues including deepening co-operation between the two sides, promoting regional infrastructure development and sustainable development, and making better use of Hong Kong's strengths in financial markets, professional services and talent. Mr Chan welcomed the AIIB's establishment of an office in Hong Kong, and looked forward to expanding co-operation between the two sides to areas such as catastrophe bond issuance, green and transition finance, technology and innovation, and talent training.

Mr Chan met with Qatar's Minister of Finance, H.E. Ali bin Ahmed Al Kuwari, yesterday morning to discuss the international political, economic and financial landscape, the economic development policies of the two places, and the direction for strengthening co-operation between the two sides. He said that the Middle East is actively promoting economic diversification and diversified asset allocation amid the current geopolitical situation, bringing new opportunities for Hong Kong and Qatar to expand co-operation. As an important functional platform for the Belt and Road Initiative, Hong Kong can leverage its strengths in finance, trade, infrastructure development, innovation and technology, and professional services to complement Qatar's development needs, and promote capital flows, two-way investment, as well as business and industry collaboration between the two places.

Mr Chan then met with representatives of the Qatari Businessmen Association. Business leaders from various sectors including finance, insurance, trade, energy and shipping attended the meeting, at which the two sides had in-depth exchanges. He introduced Hong Kong's unique advantages under "one country, two systems" as a two-way platform connecting the Mainland and the world. He pointed out that Hong Kong, on the one hand, enjoys the strong support of the motherland, enabling international enterprises to conveniently, and even with priority, access the vast Chinese Mainland market; and on the other hand continues to practise the common law system, maintain the free flow of capital and its status as a free port, and keep its business rules aligned with international standards, thereby providing enterprises with a safe, familiar and business-friendly environment. He also introduced the opportunities brought about by the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the Northern Metropolis, in particular the development layout of "South North Dual Engine (Finance IT)", and welcomed Qatari enterprises and investors to participate in the development of the Northern Metropolis and jointly explore business opportunities in Innovation and Technology (I&T) industries.

Mr Chan said that the two sides could organise reciprocal visits by business delegations and explore institutional co-operation in areas such as commerce, trade and investment. He said that Hong Kong would be pleased to explore establishing mutual recognition arrangements with the Qatar Stock Exchange, so as to facilitate dual listings in Hong Kong by Qatari enterprises wishing to expand their businesses in China and the Asia-Pacific region, enabling them to make good use of Hong Kong's international fundraising platform to attract international and Mainland capital in support of their business development.

Mr Chan also met respectively with the Chief Executive Officer of Doha Venture Capital, Mr Mohammed Al-Abdulla, and the Chief Financial Officer, Mr Niall Byrne, and the Chief Investment Execution, Mr Ken McLaren, of the Qatar Investment Authority to explore ways to strengthen two-way investment and industry collaboration.

In addition, Mr Chan met respectively with the senior management of Lesha Bank Group and Al Asmakh Group Holding. He briefed them on Hong Kong's economic, financial, trade and I&T development, and encouraged them to establish a presence in Hong Kong, expand their businesses and invest in I&T industries.

In the evening, Mr Chan attended the AIIB President's Reception hosted by Ms Zou, where he exchanged views with representatives of governments, multilateral development organisations, financial institutions and the business sector from various places.

Mr Chan will continue his visit in Doha today (September 28, Doha time), attend events related to the AIIB Annual Meeting, and depart for Hong Kong late at night.

The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, met with representatives of various organisations in Doha on September 27 (Doha time) whilst attending the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank Annual Meeting, to exchange views on financial, investment and economic co-operation. Photo shows Mr Chan (third left) meeting with representatives of Al Asmakh Group Holding. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, met with representatives of various organisations in Doha on September 27 (Doha time) whilst attending the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank Annual Meeting, to exchange views on financial, investment and economic co-operation. Photo shows Mr Chan (second left) meeting with the Chief Executive Officer of Doha Venture Capital, Mr Mohammed Al-Abdulla (first right). Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, met with representatives of various organisations in Doha on September 27 (Doha time) whilst attending the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank Annual Meeting, to exchange views on financial, investment and economic co-operation. Photo shows Mr Chan (third left) meeting with the Group Chief Executive Officer of Lesha Bank, Mr Mohammed Ismail Al Emadi (third right). Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, met with representatives of various organisations in Doha on September 27 (Doha time) whilst attending the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank Annual Meeting, to exchange views on financial, investment and economic co-operation. Photo shows Mr Chan (third left) meeting with the Chief Financial Officer of the Qatar Investment Authority, Mr Niall Byrne (third right). Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, met with representatives of various organisations in Doha on September 27 (Doha time) whilst attending the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) Annual Meeting, to exchange views on financial, investment and economic co-operation. Photo shows Mr Chan (third right) meeting with the President and Chair of the Board of Directors of the AIIB, Ms Zou Jiayi (fifth left). Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, met with representatives of various organisations in Doha on September 27 (Doha time) whilst attending the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank Annual Meeting, to exchange views on financial, investment and economic co-operation. Photo shows Mr Chan (centre) meeting with representatives of the Qatari Businessmen Association, including H.E. Sheikh Hamad bin Faisal bin Thani Al Thani (fifth right) and H.E. Sheikh Nawaf bin Faisal Al Thani (fourth right). Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, met with representatives of various organisations in Doha on September 27 (Doha time) whilst attending the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) Annual Meeting, to exchange views on financial, investment and economic co-operation. Photo shows Mr Chan (right) meeting with the President and Chair of the Board of Directors of the AIIB, Ms Zou Jiayi (left). Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, met with representatives of various organisations in Doha on September 27 (Doha time) whilst attending the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank Annual Meeting, to exchange views on financial, investment and economic co-operation. Photo shows Mr Chan (third left) meeting with representatives of the Qatari Businessmen Association, including H.E. Sheikh Hamad bin Faisal bin Thani Al Thani (third right) and H.E. Sheikh Nawaf bin Faisal Al Thani (fourth right). Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, met with representatives of various organisations in Doha on September 27 (Doha time) whilst attending the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank Annual Meeting, to exchange views on financial, investment and economic co-operation. Photo shows Mr Chan (left) meeting with Qatar's Minister of Finance, H.E. Ali bin Ahmed Al Kuwari (right). Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, met with representatives of various organisations in Doha on September 27 (Doha time) whilst attending the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank Annual Meeting, to exchange views on financial, investment and economic co-operation. Photo shows Mr Chan (left) meeting with Qatar's Minister of Finance, H.E. Ali bin Ahmed Al Kuwari (right). Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Government releases Long Term Housing Strategy Annual Progress Report 2026

The Government released today (September 28) the Long Term Housing Strategy Annual Progress Report 2026 (Progress Report).

According to the established methodology for projection under the Long Term Housing Strategy (LTHS), the gross total housing demand for the next 10-year period is 419 300 units. Hence, the Government set the supply target at 420 000 units.

"Since the LTHS annual update in 2018, the public/private split of the new housing supply has been adjusted to 70:30. Balancing the Government’s commitment to substantially increase the public housing supply to meet the social demand and the demand for private housing, the Government will maintain the public/private split of the new housing supply at 70:30 for the next 10-year period from 2027-28 to 2036-37. Accordingly, out of the total housing supply target of 420 000 units, the public housing supply target will be 294 000 units and the private housing supply target will be 126 000 units," a spokesman for the Housing Bureau said.

"In the LTHS Annual Progress Report 2024, we announced that to further meet the public’s home ownership needs, the public housing supply would be planned with a gradual move towards a 60:40 ratio between public rental housing (PRH)/Green Form Subsidised Home Ownership Scheme (GSH) units and other subsidised sale flats (SSF). The Government will continue to advance in this direction in the next decade. Correspondingly, the public housing supply target of 294 000 units will comprise 176 000 PRH/GSH units and 118 000 other SSF units," the spokesman added.

Solving the housing problem tops the agenda of the current-term Government. Through the current-term Government’s unremitting efforts to "enhance speed, quantity, quality and efficiency", a solid foundation for public housing production has been laid, and the programme is now entering its harvesting phase. This shift has enabled faster fulfilment of the public’s housing needs. The Composite Waiting Time for Subsidised Rental Housing has been shortened from the peak of 6.1 years before the current-term Government took office to 4.8 years, which is the lowest level in over eight years for two consecutive quarters, moving towards the target of reducing it to 4.5 years in 2026-27. Since the current-term Government took office (i.e. from July 2022 to June 2026), more than 85 500 applicants have been housed to PRH. Meanwhile, the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HA) and the Hong Kong Housing Society (HS) have also offered approximately 48 000 SSF units for sale, representing a significant increase of nearly double that of approximately 25 000 new SSF units offered for sale in the previous four-year period prior to the current-term of Government (i.e. from July 2018 to June 2022). In fact, since the current-term Government took office (i.e. from July 2022 to June 2026), more than 133 000 families have been housed to PRH or have purchased SSFs offered for sale by the HA and HS, representing a significant increase of over 35 per cent as compared to approximately 97 000 families in the previous four-year period prior to the current-term of Government (i.e. from July 2018 to June 2022).

In the next 10 years, the Government has identified sufficient land to meet the public housing supply target of 294 000 units. The Government will strive to provide more than 35 000 public housing (including PRH and SSF) units per year on average in the next five years (i.e. from 2027-28 to 2031-32), representing an increase of about 73 per cent compared with the five-year production since the current-term Government took office, the highest in the past 25 years. In addition, compared to the five-year period at the start of this Government, the supply of Home Ownership Scheme flats has increased significantly by approximately 100 per cent over the original projections. As in the past, when planning public housing development, the Government will maintain adequate flexibility to ensure that the public housing production can be adjusted in a timely manner in response to changes in the actual circumstances.

As for private housing, the supply target in the coming decade is 126 000 units. The Government will have sufficient land to meet the target in the next 10 years. Besides Government land sales, other sources of private housing land supply include railway property developments and Urban Renewal Authority projects, as well as private development projects. As regards private housing supply in the shorter term, based on the latest projection as at end-June 2026, the supply in the primary private residential property market for the coming three to four years is about 96 000 units.

With the continuous increase in the public housing supply, the Government has more room to further enhance various housing policies to better address the public’s housing needs. To this end, the Housing Bureau has announced four key directions for future housing policy in the Progress Report:

(i) further encourage citizens to move up the housing ladder;

(ii) enhance SSF;

(iii) eradicate substandard subdivided units and implement the Basic Housing Unit regime in an orderly manner; and

(iv) persistently promote the use of building technologies to enhance cost-effectiveness in construction, thereby ensuring the smooth implementation of the public housing programme.

Details of relevant measures are set out in the Progress Report on the Housing Bureau’s website at www.hb.gov.hk/eng/policy/housing/policy/lths/index.html.

According to the supply-led and flexible principles under the LTHS, the Government updates the long term housing demand projection annually and formulates a rolling 10-year housing supply target. The gross total housing demand takes into account the housing demand derived from the following four components:

(i) net increase in the number of households;

(ii) households displaced by redevelopment;

(iii) inadequately housed households; and

(iv) miscellaneous factors.

Source: AI-found images