Perth leads Asia-Pacific cities for FDI Strategy

Perth, nestled on the west coast of Australia, has topped the ranking of Asia-Pacific cities for FDI Strategy. 

The only Australian member city of the World Energy Cities Partnership, Perth is one of 19 internationally recognised ‘energy cities’. The initiative aims to promote industry knowledge and economic development expertise, and strategies are in place to improve investment promotion. Six of the top seven international energy companies have a presence in the city, and the council works to promote Perth as a global resources hub.

No stranger to quality of life indices, Perth ranks seventh in Economist Intelligence Unit’s Global City Liveability Index for 2016 and was ranked in the top 10% of cities in Mercer’s Quality of Living Index for 2017, which the council promotes as an incentive for investors. In 2016, A$3.8bn ($3bn) was being invested in more than 300 projects to improve facilities and infrastructure in the city, including the Riverside Redevelop-ment, a cosmopolitan waterfront community, and Metronet, an integrated transport system which will include new rail lines and extensions.

Building up Brisbane

Brisbane Marketing is responsible for the promotion of this east coast Australian city, and in 2015 the agency launched the Brisbane 2022 New World City Action Plan, the economic development roadmap and action plan for the city. As part of this strategy, eight key sectors have been highlighted as key to its economic future. The Brisbane Future Food Strategy aims to reinforce the city’s reputation as a leading city for food production and technology, while the Asia-Pacific Headquarters Strategy is focused on bolstering investment in regional headquarter operations. The Tourism Infra-structure Strategy is in place to attract FDI that builds on the tourism economy.

A A$100m cruise ship terminal is planned for the city, as well as the A$2bn 17,000 seat venue – Brisbane Live Entertainment Arena Project. Other major infrastructure upgrades include a A$1bn metro system, construction of which is due to begin in 2019, and the A$3bn Queen’s Wharf resort, a world-class entertainment and lifestyle facility boasting hotels, retail facilities and residential spaces, which is due to be opened in 2022.

Hong Kong gets technical

Once again featuring among fDi’s top locations in Asia-Pacific for FDI Strategy, Hong Kong has finished third in 2017/18. The city claims one of the fastest growing financial technology (fintech) start-up scenes in the world, and InvestHK works to promote the ecosystem to investors and attract innovative talent. The agency has supported approximately 40 fintech start-ups since the fintech team was established in September 2016.

The city’s StartmeupHK initiative, which has been running since 2013, aims to promote Hong Kong as a global hub for companies to grow their businesses. A dedicated portal launched in 2015 features interactive and comprehensive resources to serve the start-up community and the StartmeupHK festival was hosted in January 2017, to showcase why Hong Kong is an advantageous location for investment.

Keen to attract cutting-edge and innovative companies, Hong Kong’s Innovation and Technology Fund (established in 1999) has supported R&D investments and fostered an innovative ecosystem – more than HK$11.9bn ($1.5bn) has funded more than 5800 projects in the city. InvestHK conducts marketing activities, seminars and investment promotion visits at major international events in Hong Kong and in key global markets.