HK Remains Costliest Asian Business Travel Spot

Hong Kong has once again been rated the most expensive business trip destination in Asia.

Consultancy firm ECA International said business travellers spend an average of US$515 a day in the city, including hotel costs. That's US$21 more than Tokyo, which ranks second, followed by Seoul.

Globally, Hong Kong comes in at 19th, while New York is still top.

ECA says overall prices in Hong Kong rose by 1.5 percent last year compared to 2017.

Lee Quane, the firm's regional director for Asia, said business travellers may start cutting short the time they spent in Hong Kong due to this.

This in turn would add to the workload of employees visiting the city as they will need to achieve the same amount of work in that shorter time frame, he said. "That may even make them be less willing to come to Hong Kong," Quane said.

However, Quane said he expected Tokyo to replace Hong Kong next year as Asia's most expensive business trip destination as upcoming sports events like the Rugby World Cup and Olympics will push hotel rates up.