Singapore has overtaken Hong Kong to become Asia’s top financial center — and the third in the world — according to a new report that puts New York and London in the first and second spots.
Hong Kong slipped to fourth place, battered by strict COVID-19 restrictions and an exodus of talent, while San Francisco moved up two spots to round out the Global Financial Centres Index’s top five.
Hong Kong has struggled to revive its role as a global finance hub as it followed China’s lead in keeping COVID-19 cases to a minimum.
Photo: AFP
However, it announced yesterday that it would end mandatory hotel quarantine for travelers starting on Monday. Visitors must undergo polymerase chain reaction tests on arrival and are to be restricted from visiting restaurants and bars for the first three days of stay.
Tourists who test positive on arrival are to be isolated in hotel rooms or at government camps.
A November summit of global bankers, designed to restore confidence in Hong Kong, has secured pledges from about 20 leading firms to send top executives to an event that should be bolstered by the lifting of quarantine measures.
However, a sudden flurry of mass tourism is unlikely to appear soon. Many global airlines have reduced routes or stopped flying to Hong Kong over the past two years.
Singapore, on the other hand, removed most of its entry requirements in April, and is expecting to record more than 4 million visitors by the end of this year.
A slate of high-profile events including the Milken Institute Asia Summit, the Forbes Global CEO Conference and a Grand Prix are certain to help raise Singapore’s profile as a travel destination.
Shanghai, Beijing and Shenzhen all maintained spots in the index’s top 10, in spite of crippling COVID-19 mitigation measures that have effectively cut off China from the rest of the world.
Paris made a return to the report’s top 10, while Tokyo tumbled to 16th place. Sydney leapt 10 spots up the ranks to No. 13. Dubai and Abu Dhabi reigned supreme in the Middle East, sitting in 17th and 32nd place respectively. Russian financial centers suffered as a result of the war in Ukraine, with Moscow down 22 places to 73, and St Petersburg falling 17 places to 114. Barbados, Xian and Wuhan were the bottom three locations on the list.
The index, compiled by think tanks Z/Yen Partners and the China Development Institute, ranks 119 financial centers and uses data collected from thousands of financial service professionals responding to an online questionnaire.
Additional reporting by AFP
STILL COMMITTED: The US opposes any forced change to the ‘status quo’ in the Strait, but also does not seek conflict, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said US President Donald Trump’s administration released US$5.3 billion in previously frozen foreign aid, including US$870 million in security exemptions for programs in Taiwan, a list of exemptions reviewed by Reuters showed. Trump ordered a 90-day pause on foreign aid shortly after taking office on Jan. 20, halting funding for everything from programs that fight starvation and deadly diseases to providing shelters for millions of displaced people across the globe. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who has said that all foreign assistance must align with Trump’s “America First” priorities, issued waivers late last month on military aid to Israel and Egypt, the
‘UNITED FRONT’ FRONTS: Barring contact with Huaqiao and Jinan universities is needed to stop China targeting Taiwanese students, the education minister said Taiwan has blacklisted two Chinese universities from conducting academic exchange programs in the nation after reports that the institutes are arms of Beijing’s United Front Work Department, Minister of Education Cheng Ying-yao (鄭英耀) said in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper) published yesterday. China’s Huaqiao University in Xiamen and Quanzhou, as well as Jinan University in Guangzhou, which have 600 and 1,500 Taiwanese on their rolls respectively, are under direct control of the Chinese government’s political warfare branch, Cheng said, citing reports by national security officials. A comprehensive ban on Taiwanese institutions collaborating or
France’s nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and accompanying warships were in the Philippines yesterday after holding combat drills with Philippine forces in the disputed South China Sea in a show of firepower that would likely antagonize China. The Charles de Gaulle on Friday docked at Subic Bay, a former US naval base northwest of Manila, for a break after more than two months of deployment in the Indo-Pacific region. The French carrier engaged with security allies for contingency readiness and to promote regional security, including with Philippine forces, navy ships and fighter jets. They held anti-submarine warfare drills and aerial combat training on Friday in
COMBAT READINESS: The military is reviewing weaponry, personnel resources, and mobilization and recovery forces to adjust defense strategies, the defense minister said The military has released a photograph of Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) appearing to sit beside a US general during the annual Han Kuang military exercises on Friday last week in a historic first. In the photo, Koo, who was presiding over the drills with high-level officers, appears to be sitting next to US Marine Corps Major General Jay Bargeron, the director of strategic planning and policy of the US Indo-Pacific Command, although only Bargeron’s name tag is visible in the seat as “J5 Maj General.” It is the first time the military has released a photo of an active
RSS