HONG KONG (Reuters) – Residents leaving Hong Kong for good withdrew a total of HK$1.69 billion ($216.01 million) from their Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) pension accounts in the fourth quarter of 2023, down 1.6% from a year earlier, government data showed.
A total of 7,200 claims were made in the October-December quarter, compared with the 7,000 claims taking out HK$1.72 billion during the same period in 2022, data from the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority showed on Tuesday.
The number of claims compared to 8,700 in the July-September quarter, 7,300 in the April-June quarter and 6,700 claims over January-March that saw withdrawals of HK$2.21 billion, HK$1.79 billion and HK$1.57 billion respectively.
The MPF is a compulsory retirement scheme for Hong Kong residents, with employees and their employers required to make contributions.
Curbs to control the spread of COVID-19 were among the reasons why people left Hong Kong.
Border checkpoints were reopened fully in February last year while all pandemic curbs were lifted from March 1.
Authorities have been trying to restore business confidence and attract investors and tourists after more than three years of severe pandemic measures.
In the fourth quarter of 2023, the total number of claims – spanning all reasons including retirement – was 66,000, a decrease of 3.6% from the previous quarter’s 68,500.
($1 = 7.8238 Hong Kong dollars)
(Reporting by Donny Kwok; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)
