Oases unveils fourth batch of strategic enterprises

Hong Kong has unveiled the fourth batch of strategic enterprises, comprising 18 companies – including two from the US and one from rival hub Singapore – specializing in such fields as health technology, new energy, and financial technology.

These companies, which will set up research centers, expand their business, or establish a regional or global headquarters in the city, have signed a partnership agreement with the Office for Attracting Strategic Enterprises, or Oases.

Together with the 66 key enterprises drawn to the city in the first three batches, these strategic enterprises are expected to invest around HK$50 billion and create over 20,000 jobs in the coming years, Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said at the signing ceremony on Tuesday.

One of the companies in the latest batch, Li Auto (2015), plans to invest more than HK$2 billion in the financial hub and hire around 200 people to set up an overseas headquarters.

The Hong Kong office is positioned to serve as a hub for capital and management, a center for intellectual property and technology standards, and a research and development center for artificial intelligence infrastructure, a senior executive of the Chinese electric vehicle maker said.

Enlight Medical, a Boston-based medical technology company eyeing expansion in the SAR, believes Hong Kong, as a free port, ensures stable support for it to import components, raw materials, and production equipment from the United States amid a potential global trade disruption caused by tariffs.

Hong Kong boasts high-quality research and development talent and a strategic geographic location, offering significant advantages in driving regional collaboration, attracting global technologies, leveraging production resources within the Greater Bay Area, and developing and marketing products for both mainland and global markets, said its chief operating officer, Rocky Bian Yingnan.

STAFF REPORTER