Volatile markets and sovereign debt crises have thinned the ranks of Hong Kong's wealthy, but they are not about to become extinct, with one millionaire in nearly every 13 people.
And of these millionaires, nearly one in five are housewives, Citibank found in a joint survey with the social sciences research centre at the University of Hong Kong.
The millionaires - individuals with liquid assets worth more than HK$1 million, not including property - totalled 527,000 last year, down by 31,000 from 558,000 in 2010.
'The drop was in line with the performance of markets last year,' said Christine Lam, deputy country business manager and head of retail banking in the Citibank global consumer group, referring to volatility caused by fears of an economic slowdown and by the euro-zone crisis.
The Hang Seng Index dropped more than 21 per cent last year.
Retirees, housewives and executives were the top three millionaire 'occupations'. About 21 per cent of millionaires interviewed identified themselves as retirees, 18 per cent were housewives and 18 per cent were executives and managers. Professionals and business owners rounded up the top five occupations.