A new report on China’s high net-worth individuals (HNWI) has found major changes to their foreign investment preferences in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The “Chinese HNWI Post COVID-19 New Normal” report (探索·主动·更新——2020中国高净值人群需求管理白皮书), jointly released by China CITIC Bank and the Hurun Report, found that in the wake of the Novel Coronavirus the preferred investment destinations of wealthy Chinese have undergone a significant shift.
Hong Kong has surpassed the US as the most preferred investment destination for cross-border investment amongst Chinese HNWI, with its selection share rising from 40% in 2019 to 45% this year, as compared to a drop from 61% to 40% for the US over the same period.
Enthusiasm for US investment has dropped nearly 50% over the past four years, although its share continues to exceed the sum for the UK, Japan, Switzerland and France.
The report further found that enthusiasm for financial investment amongst Chinese HNWI has received a boost from COVID-19, rising 67% compared to last year.
