Nine in 10 Chinese family business operators expect to report growth next year, PwC poll finds

About 89 per cent believe they could report growth in 2022, compared with 83 per cent in Hong Kong and 86 per cent globally, poll finds

Optimism among mainland family businesses would have a positive impact on Hong Kong too, PwC executive says

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A shopping district in Shanghai. Better control of the coronavirus pandemic and a faster economic recovery are fuelling optimism among mainland Chinese family business operators. Photo: Reuters

Published: 11:00am, 18 May 2021Updated: 10:52pm, 18 May 2021

Nine out of 10 mainland Chinese family business operators expected to report growth next year, ahead of their counterparts in Hong Kong and globally, according to a survey by PwC.

About 89 per cent believed they could report growth in 2022, compared with 83 per cent in Hong Kong and 86 per cent globally. The survey, conducted every two years, polled more than 2,800 family business operators in 87 markets in the fourth quarter last year.

“The optimism of mainland Chinese family business operators was down to the better control of the outbreak, and China’s economy recovering faster than other markets,” said John Wong, PwC’s China and Hong Kong family business and private client services leader.

China’s economy almost came to a standstill in the first half of last year because of the Covid-19 pandemic. It, however, grew by 18.3 per cent year on year in the first quarter of 2021, its highest growth on record, government data shows. In comparison, Hong Kong’s economy grew 7.8 per cent, while the US economy expanded by 6.4 per cent in the same period.

Mainland operators were also more optimistic when it came to 2021 – 73 per cent expected growth this year, compared with 65 per cent globally and 53 per cent in Hong Kong. The IMF forecast in January that China’s economy would grow 8.1 per cent for the whole year, compared with 5.5 per cent growth for the global economy.

John Wong, PwC’s China and Hong Kong family business and private client services leader. Photo: Handout