Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said in his weekly blog on Sunday that the city was packed with visitors from finance and investment circles, the wealth management industry, family office owners and managers, artists, art lovers, sports elites and spectators for a spate of business summits and sporting and cultural events.
He said the Hong Kong Sevens rugby tournament had pushed the vibrant atmosphere to a peak on Sunday, the last day of the three-day event, at the new 50,000-seat stadium at Kai Tak Sports Park.
As of Friday, the city had welcomed 3.4 million visitors in March, a 12 per cent year-on-year increase, including 960,000 people from locations other than mainland China, with hotel occupancy in busy districts hitting about 90 per cent, Chan said.
“When interacting with these international guests, one piece of feedback I received was very consistent. That is, they believe that Hong Kong has regained its former vibrancy and vitality, and their views on Hong Kong have become increasingly positive,” he wrote.
“They also hope to use Hong Kong as a platform to explore more investment opportunities on the mainland and the region.”
Chan promised to promote the “event economy” by organising mega-events, summits and exhibitions with distinctive themes, to attract more high-value-added business tourists to Hong Kong and bring more business opportunities to various related industries.
