Hong Kong investment company HKIC to get expanded remit after early gains

All eyes on Wednesday will be on how the government plans to give a big push to its latest investment darling, the Hong Kong Investment Corporation, its three-year-old vehicle that has yielded impressive early gains.Sources told the South China Morning Post that HKIC would come up as a key highlight in Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po’s budget statement to be delivered on Wednesday.It will be tasked to work closely with regional and international long-term capital to “guide investment towards high-quality commercial property projects” that would be in sync with the city’s industrial positioning and then work with other investors to go into targeted sectors.The moves were a clear sign of confidence in HKIC and an expansion of its role, while still staying strictly within the investing sphere rather than property ownership or management, the source said.HKIC CEO Clara Chan Ka-chai (left) and Financial Secretary Paul Chan (centre). Photo: Jonathan WongHKIC, first announced in Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu’s 2022 policy address, was set up to use the government’s reserves to boost the economy.