The Hong Kong Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) achieved record earnings of HK$207 billion (US$26.5 billion) in the first nine months of this year, pushing total assets to the HK$1.5 trillion mark for the first time, according to the pension regulator on Monday.
The performance translated to an average gain of HK$43,225 for each of the 4.8 million MPF members, according to data from MPF Ratings, an independent research firm.
The record figure for the first three quarters of the year was 18 per cent higher than the amount at December 31 last year, and equivalent to HK$319,201 for each MPF member.
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“Total MPF assets surpassing the HK$1.5 trillion mark is another significant milestone of the MPF system,” Ayesha Macpherson Lau, chairwoman of the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority (MPFA), said in a statement on Monday.
“This underscores the ability of MPF to help the working population accumulate steady retirement savings through regular contributions, continuous investments and the compounding effect over time,” she said.
Hong Kong’s 379 MPF investment funds earned a 15.8 per cent return on average during the first nine months. Photo: Jonathan Wong alt=Hong Kong’s 379 MPF investment funds earned a 15.8 per cent return on average during the first nine months. Photo: Jonathan Wong>
Hong Kong’s 379 MPF investment funds earned a 15.8 per cent return on average during the first nine months, the MPF Ratings data showed.
Funds invested in Hong Kong and China stocks returned 37.28 per cent in the first nine months and 15.9 per cent in the third quarter alone, the best among the fund types.
The second-best performers were the mixed asset funds – a combination of bond and stock investments – which achieved an earnings rate of 21.9 per cent in the first nine months and 7.9 per cent in the third quarter.
Asian equity funds rounded out the top three, with returns of 20.9 per cent in the first nine months and 8.7 per cent in the third quarter.
“The rally in the equity markets this year, especially the strong growth of the Hang Seng Index, was the major contributor to the high earnings of MPF,” said Kenrick Chung, chief corporate solutions officer at Bay Insurance Brokers in Hong Kong.
The Hang Seng Index has soared 34 per cent so far this year, as investors rushed to buy Chinese tech stocks amid a global race for leadership in artificial intelligence and capital inflows to participate in the new listings.
