Number of millionaires in Hong Kong MPF doubles
Hong Kong's pension regulator said the number of millionaires in its scheme doubled as the total assets of the Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) reached an all-time high of HK$1.4 trillion (US$178 billion) as of June, an increase of 130 per cent from 10 years earlier.
In a blog post on Sunday, Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority (MPFA) chairwoman Ayesha Macpherson Lau said around 125,000 MPF members had assets of more than HK$1 million, double the tally from five years earlier. The MPFA attributed its increase in assets to strong investment performance and voluntary contributions to the scheme.In addition, she said there were 27,000 MPF members who had HK$2 million in assets or more.
'The MPF is a long-term investment,' she said. 'With early planning and leveraging voluntary contributions, individuals can steadily build reliable financial reserves … for their basic retirement protection.' Established in 2000, the MPF is a compulsory retirement scheme covering more than 4.75 million members. It collects monthly contributions from employers and employees – each at 5 per cent of a worker's monthly salary – or up to HK$3,000 a month.
Members can also make voluntary contributions; around 30 per cent of members were willing to do so. The MPFA's data showed that over 25 years, about 30 per cent of MPF members have made voluntary contributions of HK$520,000 each on average, on top of a HK$500,000 mandatory contribution per person.Assuming a participant who made voluntary contributions chose the default investment strategy, which has a diversified investment portfolio, they were projected to have total MPF assets of HK$3.4 million by 2040, double what was available to those who only made a mandatory contribution, Lau said.
The growth in MPF assets was also driven by a strong investment performance. The MPF achieved its third-best interim performance as a rally in Chinese stocks this year improved returns and helped lift total assets to their highest level since 2000.
The 379 MPF funds generated a combined HK$115 billion in investment income from January to June this year, according to MPF Ratings, an independent research firm.
'Earnings have driven MPF's historic run,' said Francis Chung, chairman of MPF Ratings on Friday. 'We expect the average MPF member account balance to exceed HK$300,000 for the first time by the end of July.' The growth in MPF assets was mainly aided by a rally in the Hong Kong stock market, according to Kenrick Chung, chief corporate solutions officer at Bay Insurance Brokers.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Al Jazeera
5 hours ago
- Al Jazeera
US senator plans trip to Taiwan as Trump's interest in island cools: Report
Taipei, Taiwan – A senior United States Republican legislator is reportedly planning a trip to Taiwan, according to media reports, where fears have been growing that US President Donald Trump is losing interest in relations with the democratic, self-ruled island in favour of building ties with China. The Financial Times reported on Thursday that US Senator Roger Wicker from Mississippi is planning to visit Taiwan in August, citing three people familiar with the matter. Wicker is the Republican chair of the powerful Senate Armed Services Committee and 'one of Taiwan's biggest allies in Congress', according to the report. Wicker's office and the American Institute in Taiwan – Washington's de facto embassy in Taipei – did not immediately reply to Al Jazeera's request for comment on the reported trip. US legislators regularly visit Taiwan, an unofficial ally of Washington, but Wicker's trip comes at a time of uncertainty for US-Taiwan relations. Taiwanese President William Lai Ching-te was reportedly planning to stop in the US next month en route to visiting allies in Latin America, but he cancelled his travel plans after Trump nixed a layover in New York, the Financial Times also reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Lai's office never officially announced the trip, but on Monday, his office said the president had no plans to travel overseas as he focused on typhoon cleanup in southern Taiwan and tariff negotiations with the US. The timing of President Lai's cancelled visit was noted in Taiwan, as it was followed by a separate announcement from Trump that he hoped to visit China at the invitation of President Xi Jinping as Beijing and Washington hammer out a tariff deal. Xi, who also heads the Chinese Communist Party, has pledged to annex Taiwan by peace or by force and considers Lai and his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to be 'separatists'. Beijing objects to visits by Taiwanese leaders to the US, even if they are carried out on an unofficial basis. Experts say it is possible that Wicker's trip was planned months ago, but the visit could still be used by US legislators to assuage fears that the White House is losing interest in Taiwan. 'I'm sure many will hope for words of affirmation and commitment to the US-Taiwan relationship, which before would be par for the course, but today will feel extra needed to assure both the DPP and Taiwanese citizens who have a declining view of the United States,' said Lev Nachman, a political scientist at National Taiwan University in Taipei. Although the US is Taiwan's security guarantor and has pledged to provide Taipei with the means to defend itself, there are deep currents of scepticism towards the US – known as yimeilun – running through Taiwanese society. That has grown more prominent since Trump took office last year and said that Taiwan should pay for its own defence, later threatening to slap a 32 percent tariff on Taiwanese exports. A survey in April of 1,500 Taiwanese voters by Nachman and others found that just 23.1 percent viewed the US as either a 'trustworthy or very trustworthy' partner, down from 33.6 percent in June 2024 when US President Joe Biden was still in office. 'The Trump administration's policy choices are impacting public opinion in Taiwan and South Korea. In the span of a few months, attitudes towards the United States in both Taiwan and South Korea have become more negative. Still, the United States continues to be the most important partner for Taiwan and South Korea,' the survey said.
Al Jazeera
8 hours ago
- Al Jazeera
Trump announces trade deal with South Korea, setting tariff at 15 percent
United States President Donald Trump has announced a trade deal with South Korea, the latest agreement unveiled ahead of his August 1 deadline for the imposition of steep tariffs on dozens of countries. Under the 'full and complete' trade deal, South Korean goods will be subject to a 15 percent tariff, while US exports will not face duties, Trump said on his Truth Social platform on Wednesday. South Korea will also pay $350bn for investments 'owned and controlled' by the US, purchase $100bn of liquefied natural gas and other energy products, Trump said. The East Asian country also agreed to invest a 'large sum' of money for its own investment purposes, Trump said, with the amount to be announced 'within the next two weeks' when South Korean President Lee Jae-myung visits the White House. 'It is also agreed that South Korea will be completely OPEN TO TRADE with the United States, and that they will accept American product including Cars and Trucks, Agriculture, etc.,' Trump wrote. Lee, who took office in June after a months-long leadership vacuum prompted by impeached former president Yoon Suk-yeol's short-lived declaration of martial law, said the agreement 'eliminated uncertainties' and ensured that South Korea would tariffs at equal or lower levels than its competitors. 'The key is not to pursue unilateral benefits but to derive mutually beneficial results,' Lee said in a post on Facebook. 'This agreement is the outcome of aligning the US interests in revitalising its manufacturing industry with our determination to expand the competitiveness of our companies in the US market. Through this, we anticipate that industrial cooperation between Korea and the U.S. will be further strengthened, and the Korea-U.S. alliance will become even more solid.' South Korea had faced a 25 percent tariff from August 1 if it did reach a deal, in addition to separate duties on steel, aluminum, vehicles and auto parts. South Korea's KOSPI rose on the news, with the benchmark stock index up nearly about 0.4 percent in early trading on Thursday. More to follow…
Qatar Tribune
11 hours ago
- Qatar Tribune
China vows to support tariff-hit companies as US talks left in limbo
Agencies China's top leaders on Wednesday promised support for companies hit by higher U.S. tariffs but stopped short of announcing major measures after this week's trade talks with Washington left businesses and policymakers in limbo. At their summer economic planning meeting, the powerful Politburo of the ruling Communist Party pledged to stabilize foreign trade and investment. 'We must assist foreign trade enterprises that have been severely impacted, strengthen financing support, and promote the integrated development of domestic and foreign trade,' the official Xinhua News Agency said in reporting the closed-door meeting. It mentioned export tax rebates and free trade pilot zones but gave no other specifics. The inconclusive outcome of two days of trade talks in Stockholm, Sweden, leaves open the question of higher tariffs on Chinese exports to the United States. Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng said the two sides had agreed to work on extending the deadline for higher tariffs. The U.S. side said the extension was discussed, but not decided. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters after the talks that President Donald Trump would decide whether to extend the Aug. 12 deadline for reaching an agreement or to let tariffs that have been paused for 90 days to 'boomerang' back to a higher level. 'We haven't given the sign-off,' Bessent said, though he emphasized that the talks had been 'very constructive.' China remains one of the biggest challenges for the Trump administration after it has struck deals over elevated tariff rates with other key trading partners – including Britain, Japan and the European Union. Many analysts had expected that the Stockholm talks would result in an extension of current tariff levels, which currently stand at a U.S. tariff of 30% on Chinese goods and a Chinese tariff of 10% on U.S. products, far lower than the triple-digit percentage rates raised in April. The truce in the tariffs war to allow time for talks, agreed on in early May to allow time for negotiations, allowed exporters and other traders to ramp up shipments in hopes of beating any higher tariffs that might follow. The Politburo meeting, headed by Chinese leader Xi Jinping, mostly reiterated Beijing's priorities for the year, including a need to 'unleash domestic demand,' which has lagged, leading to a surge of exports by industries unable to find growth at home. It also stressed the need to promote jobs and prevent a 'large-scale relapse into poverty.' The economy 'has demonstrated strong vitality and resilience,' the Xinhua report said. But it acknowledged many risks and challenges. That includes reining in brutal competition that has led to damaging price wars among automakers and some other manufacturers and managing excess capacity in some industries, it said. China's economy expanded at a 5.2% annual pace in the April-July period, slowing slightly from the previous quarter. But analysts have said actual growth may have been significantly slower. Even with the hiatus in higher tariffs, companies are feeling a pinch. Industrial profits in China fell 1.8% in the first half of the year and 4.3% in June, according to data released earlier this week. It's unclear what level of tariffs might eventually be imposed on Chinese exports to the United States. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said Thursday that Beijing hopes the U.S. side will follow through on the 'important consensus' reached between Trump and Xi in a phone call to promote stable relations between the world's two largest economies. But Guo reiterated China's stance on its U.S. objections to its purchases of oil and gas from Russia, which Bessent raised during the talks in Stockholm, threatening more tariffs. 'China will take reasonable measures to ensure energy security in accordance with its national interests,' Guo said. 'There are no winners in a tariff war. Coercion and pressure will not solve the problem. China will resolutely safeguard its sovereignty, security and development interests.'
