Gulf capital flowing into Asia as Hong Kong-Middle East trade up 35%: Paul Chan
Finance chief says bilateral trade surged in first five months of 2026 following deepening of ties over recent years
Capital from the Gulf region is showing signs of flowing into Asia, according to Hong Kong’s finance chief, as bilateral trade between the Middle East and the city rose 35 per cent in the first five months of the year.
In his weekly blog on Sunday, Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said Hong Kong and the Middle East had deepened ties in the areas of the economy, trade, finance, innovation and technology (I&T), and culture over the past few years.
While trade between the Gulf Arab States and Hong Kong rose about 5 per cent last year, the figure was up 35 per cent year on year in the first five months of this year, he added.
In particular, Chan highlighted that bilateral trade between the city and the United Arab Emirates soared by more than 52 per cent over the same period.
“In terms of capital flows, Gulf sovereign wealth funds previously invested mainly in American and European markets. However, of their tens of billions of US dollars allocated globally last year, about 40 per cent flowed into Asia,” he said.
“This reflects a clear shift in their asset allocation, with a diversified asset allocation strategy gradually taking shape.”