Hong Kong ranked ninth in the World Talent Ranking 2024 published Thursday by the International Institute for Management Development, a business school headquartered in Switzerland, up from the 16th spot last year.

Hong Kong improved across all three talent competitiveness factors in the ranking as compared to last year, according to the report. Its position rose from six to four in "readiness," from 15 to 13 in "investment and development," and the "appeal" ranking also moved up from 32 to 28.

In a breakdown by indicators subsumed under the factors, Hong Kong topped the ranking in the percentage of sciences graduates, and was among the global top five in the availability of finance skills, effectiveness of management education and remuneration of management.

Hong Kong's return to the top 10 in the ranking showed that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government's efforts in education and talent admission have paid off, said a spokesperson for the HKSAR government.

By the end of August this year, over 360,000 applications were received under various talent admission schemes, with nearly 230,000 applications approved. During the same period, over 150,000 people of talent arrived in Hong Kong through various talent admission schemes.