Life after work: Hong Kong employees’ retirement savings fall short by about HK$2 million
Most workers expect to save only about HK$1.2m by the time they retire
Most Hong Kong employees on average are expected to fall short by about HK$2 million (US$260,000) for life after retirement, according to a survey by the Hong Kong Investment Funds Association (HKIFA).
Only 23 per cent of Hong Kong employees believe that they would have enough money after retiring, showed the survey, which was conducted during the third quarter of 2017.
Based on the current living standards, it is expected that a Hong Kong employee would need to save HK$3.1 million when they reach 65 so as to enable them to maintain the same level of living after leaving work.
However, the employees surveyed on average expected to save about HK$1.2 million by the time they retire, meaning there would be a shortfall of nearly HK$2 million.
The pension shortfall is a cause for concern as Hongkongers are living longer. The average life expectancy for Hong Kong men will increase from 81.3 years in 2016 to 87.1 by 2066, and for women it will rise from 87.3 years to 93.1, according to a Hong Kong government estimate.
Hong Kong has no official retirement age, but many private companies ask employees to leave at 60.
But on average, men who retired from the workforce last year are expected to finance another 21.3 years of life, while the average woman faces more than a quarter of a century, or 27.3 years, of life. By 2066, that will rise to 27.1 years for men and 33.1 years for women without salary.