More than 40% of the members of Hong Kong’s American Chamber of Commerce are planning to leave the city in the near future, a survey published by the organization Wednesday revealed.
The bulk of respondents who answered in the affirmative cited last year’s broad national security law, which makes subversion, secession and collusion with foreign powers punishable with life in prison - as the main reason for leaving Hong Kong.
More than 300 members of the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) participated in the survey between May 5 and May 9. A reported 42% intend on moving away from the financial hub; 3% plan to leave immediately, 10% before summer’s end and 15% before the end of the year, while 48% are considering a move within five years.
The majority pointed to the new security law as a cause for discomfort and as possibly affecting their children’s education.
"Previously, I never had a worry about what I said or wrote when I was in Hong Kong," the organization quoted an anonymous respondent saying. "That has changed (...) I don't want to continue to fear saying or writing something that could unknowingly cause me to be arrested."
Other major concerns among respondents were pandemic-related travel restrictions that will likely persist into next year at least, as well as rising cost of living and Hong Kong’s competitiveness relative to other cities in the region.
But it wasn’t all doom and gloom. Of those who plan on staying, 77% referenced the high quality of life in the city and 55% cited its “excellent” business environment.
Proximity to mainland China was another big draw for AmCham members, while one respondent said he believed Hong Kong to be much safer than the United States at the moment.
“Hong Kong is still a conduit of the east and west,” he added. “It has so much more to offer to businesses.”
