In a report dated June 13, 2024 by Sing Tao Daily, the chief economist of DBS Bank (Hong Kong), Xie Jiaxi, stated that the property market in Hong Kong is expected to remain stable in the second half of the year, with property prices fluctuating by around 5% throughout the year.
Xie noted that there are still concerns about property prices and transactions in Hong Kong this year. Despite the removal of the cooling measures, mainland investors are starting to pay attention to the Hong Kong property market. However, with the current high interest rates and the cost of owning a property outweighing rental returns, domestic demand for property ownership is being suppressed. It is expected that local property market conditions will improve next year when interest rates decrease and economic activities pick up.
In the medium term, land reserves are beginning to decrease, and the market is slowly absorbing inventory. The supply and demand dynamics are expected to change again, coupled with an increase in talent moving to Hong Kong, which will help support the mid-term property market in Hong Kong.
Regarding the local retail sector, Xie believes that the main issues continue to be interest rates and exchange rates. A strong Hong Kong dollar affects the willingness of tourists to spend in Hong Kong. It is anticipated that a decrease in interest rates and a weakening of the Hong Kong dollar will benefit the local retail market.