The chairwoman of the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce, Agnes Chan, on Tuesday said a recent survey by the body found about half of local businesses are optimistic about the city's economic outlook for next year.

At the chamber's International Business Summit in Admiralty, Chan said many firms are digitising their products and services, which helps business growth.

"Much of that confidence is due to 75 percent increasing operational efficiency as part of their digital transformation journey," she told summit participants, including chief executives of local companies such as HSBC and the MTR.

"In fact, Hong Kong isn't just holding its own, it is thriving. This year, we have seen record numbers of local and international businesses set up in the city," she said.

"The momentum helped push economic growth to 3.8 percent in the third quarter, a remarkable figure for any advanced economy, especially in today's climate of uncertainty."

The full results from the survey Chan cited, covering business turnout, hiring intentions, investment sentiment, artificial intelligence usage and economic forecast, are scheduled to be released on Thursday.

A similar survey last year found 18.3 percent of local firms were optimistic about the outlook for this year, while 44.3 percent were negative.

On a separate note, Chan congratulated Jonathan Lamport for his win in Sunday's Legco elections. Lamport succeeds Jeffrey Lam in the commercial functional constituency seat.