Hong Kong Bets on Digital Ports to Stay Competitive

January 19, 2026

By Our Correspondent

Hong Kong is betting on digital infrastructure to reinforce its role as a global logistics hub. About 2,300 businesses have registered on a new digital logistics platform developed by the government, which offers real-time shipment tracking across sea, land and air transport.

The platform, known as the Port Community System, was launched on Friday. Mable Chan, Hong Kong’s secretary for transport and logistics, said the system would improve data transparency and simplify information flows across the logistics sector. It integrates shipping data using blockchain technology and artificial intelligence to provide real-time cargo-monitoring services.

Ms Chan described the system as essential to the industry’s future, arguing that digitalisation is critical to sustaining Hong Kong’s position as a centre for trade, finance and shipping. “What the government does must be practical for the industry,” she said, emphasising the need for close collaboration with private-sector users.

The platform is part of a broader push to modernise port operations and improve competitiveness amid intensifying regional rivalry. It will work alongside “Project CargoX”, an initiative led by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority to centralise logistics data. Trade and cargo information from the port system will be shared with the project, mirroring similar arrangements already in place at the airport.

According to the government, improved data integration could also help small and medium-sized firms gain faster access to financing, by making cargo and trade information more readily available to lenders.

Further digitisation is planned. The transport bureau said it would work with customs authorities to streamline cargo detention notices, replacing paper-based procedures with digital ones to speed up clearance and improve transparency.

The Port Community System is a key component of Hong Kong’s smart-port development strategy, which aims to preserve its status as a regional transshipment hub. Beyond linking local logistics players, the system is designed to connect with overseas ports and commercial shipping-data platforms.

An initial prototype was tested in 2023. In March last year, the Legislative Council’s finance committee approved HK$210m (about $27m) in funding to support the system’s development.