Li, 87, arrived in Hong Kong from war-ravaged China in 1940 and started his fortune making plastic flowers to export to the West. At times claiming the title of Asia’s richest person, Li became a symbol of the city’s own rise, although his "Superman" image has been tempered by broader disillusionment over Hong Kong’s future and ties with the mainland.
While amassing one of the world’s biggest personal fortunes -- the Bloomberg Billionaires Index values it at $28.9 billion -- Li’s also given much away. Since 1980, his Li Ka Shing Foundation has donated HK$20 billion to health care, education and religious causes, mostly in the greater China region, according to its website.
Li has reason to be concerned about his home. Hong Kong’s economy unexpectedly contracted 0.4 percent in the first three months of the year compared to the prior quarter -- the steepest drop since 2011. The local retail industry, a key pillar of the local economy, has been hit by China’s slowdown and President Xi Jinping’s years-long anti-corruption campaign that hurt sales of luxury shops.
Upcoming Elections
Li’s remarks come as the city prepares for legislative elections in September, the first since the Occupy protests and the emergence of small, but strident movement advocating independence from mainland China. In March, a committee of 1,200 electors will meet to select a chief executive for the next five years, a Beijing-controlled process at the center of the 2014 protests.
The current leader, Leung Chun-ying, saw his approval rating in May fall to the lowest recorded by the University of Hong Kong’s Public Opinion Program. Some prominent local figures including lawmaker James Tien, founder of the pro-Beijing, pro-business Liberal Party, and Ricky Wong, chairman of Hong Kong Television Network Ltd., have urged finding an alternative candidate who can better bridge the city’s political divides.
Li represents the property and construction sectors on the chief executive selection committee and supported Leung’s rival, former Chief Secretary Henry Tang, in 2012. This time around, he said it was "very difficult to say" who would win the top job.
"Most importantly, this person has to understand Hong Kong and have the ability to fill Hong Kong with hope," he said. "In the past 20 years, Hong Kong has never seen such tough times."