The worst social turmoil to rock Hong Kong since it returned to Chinese rule more than two decades ago has dampened business sentiment in the territory and spurred more mainland Chinese and Hong Kong residents to park some of their funds here, according to observers.

"We are a natural safe harbour for mainland Chinese to park and diversify their assets and funds. Now, we are also seeing more Hong Kong money looking for sanctuary here... Our real estate prices have also risen recently. However, it is hard to say how sustained the interest will be or if it is just a knee-jerk reaction," said TSMP Law Corporation joint managing partner Stefanie Yuen-Thio, who counts Hong Kongers and mainland Chinese among the firm's biggest offshore clients.