MAINLAND financial companies are taking more office space in Hong Kong, joining Alibaba and other mainland firms expanding in the world’s most expensive market even as foreign players consider scaling back. CMB International Capital Corp., China Minsheng Banking Corp. and Orient Finance Holdings Ltd. expanded their office space in the Central hub in the past three months, Bloomberg News quoted sources familiar with the matter as saying yesterday. CMB International, a subsidiary of China Merchants Bank Co., leased an extra floor with about 17,000 square feet (1,579 square meters) in Champion Tower this month, said the report. Minsheng Bank signed up for about 12,000 square feet at Two International Finance Center last month, while Orient Securities Co.’s local arm Orient Finance added 13,000 square feet in 100 Queen’s Road Central in April, according to the report. The expansion contrasts with muted demand from global firms in the Asian finance hub. Property consultants have said that foreign companies are reviewing their office needs as the virus prompts many staff to work from home. The market has also been hit by a virus-induced recession, and lingering concerns over protests. The vacancy rate in the prime business district rose to a 12-year high at 5 percent in May, according to Jones Lang LaSalle Inc. Central has the world’s costliest rents for office, averaging US$313 per square foot, topping New York’s Midtown and London’s West End, data from Jones Lang LaSalle Inc. show. Tech giants from the mainland have also leased more floors to accommodate their growth in the city. TikTok owner ByteDance Ltd. and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. took up more space in Causeway Bay, just a few subway stops from Central. (SD-Agencies) |