The French population in the city shrank more than 20 per cent to about 11,000 in 2022 from about 14,000 in 2019, according to the Consulate General of France in Hong Kong and Macau. The tide is turning after travel barriers were removed, according to Laurent Pelletier of Veolia, a Paris-based water, waste and energy management group.
“Today, we can see a lot of newcomers,” said Pelletier, who is the managing director in Hong Kong for the French group. A wide range of French businesses, from utilities to infrastructure, food and financial services “are bringing new people to Hong Kong”, he added.
The city can be a good springboard for French companies to establish a beachhead in the Greater Bay Area, an economic zone created in February 2019 encompassing nine cities in the southern Guangdong province in mainland China, Macau and Hong Kong.
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The bay area, with a population base of 87 million, contributes about 35 per cent to China’s annual exports and 11 per cent to the gross domestic product, according to government data.
Pelletier said the Greater Bay Area provides more opportunities for French firms operating in Hong Kong. Recycling firms, for example, can collect all the plastic, paper and other waste materials in the city and process them in the Greater Bay Area for re-use in the textile or other manufacturing industries.
French companies can also transfer their green technologies to Hong Kong to help the city achieve its carbon neutrality targets by 2050, said Wolf, who is also promoting the Summer Olympics to be held in Paris next year.
The French government has made efforts to ensure the sporting event is held in a manner that supports the use of clean energy and reduces waste.
The news is published by EMEA Tribune & SCMP
