The city's finance and commerce chiefs said Hong Kong will roll out a series of new measures to proactively attract more mainland firms to expand into overseas market – by using the city as a "launch pad".

Their remarks also came as the SAR government established a dedicated platform, the Task Force on Supporting Mainland Enterprises in Going Global, to capitalise on such a trend, which they describe as "inevitable" due to the ongoing reshuffle in the global trading system.

The idea was unveiled by Chief Executive John Lee in his recent Policy Address.

Speaking at the launch ceremony on Monday, Financial Secretary Paul Chan noted that the momentum of global expansion by mainland companies is "accelerating", especially into regions known as the Global South, with the firms reorganising their industrial and supply chains amid the changing geopolitical landscape.

"The emerging economies in the Global South are growing rapidly and are also actively promoting sustainable development," he said in a keynote speech.

"During this process, they need not only large amounts of capital but also high-quality enterprises, products, technologies and services.

"Mainland enterprises, especially the manufacturing and technology firms, as well as start-ups, can serve the needs of these nations with their outstanding technological innovation capabilities, strong production capacity and new solutions," he added.

Chan noted that China's outbound direct investment has exceeded US$190 billion in 2024, representing an increase of more than 8 percent.

Asean-bloc investments rose by nearly 40 percent, while those in economies under the Belt and Road Initiative advanced by more than 20 percent year on year.

Chan said the SAR could better capitalise on the "trend" with the task force, which will offer more comprehensive and in-depth support for these mainland enterprises.

The government, he added, will also introduce various measures, such as attracting mainland banks to set up regional headquarters in Hong Kong with tax incentives.

Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Algernon Yau, who is leading the task force, noted that the establishment of the platform was "unprecedented" in its gathering of resources from various sectors to offer one-stop services.

"The GoGlobal Task Force will offer targeted and tailor-made one-stop support solutions for mainland firms, including consulting services in areas such as taxation, law, financing and intellectual property protection," he told event participants.

"Our goal is very clear: we help these firms to expand their international business in an orderly manner, in line with national policy direction as well as the needs of the firms.

"We can transform this into a new driving force for the Hong Kong economy, further strengthening the SAR's role as an international trade hub."

Yau added that as the government's new Economic and Trade Office in Kuala Lumpur is about to start operations, the task force could further expand to explore emerging markets there.

Chan also said the task force would initiate "high-level coordinations" between government officials and arrange for more non-governmental, professional, and business institutions to join hands to create synergies.

Group tours will also be organised for mainland firms to have hands-on visits in targeted markets, he added.