This aerial photo taken on Sept 11, 2020 shows the city view of Shenzhen, in south China's Guangdong province. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

Hong Kong and Macao graduates showed growing zeal to seek employment opportunities or start their own businesses in Shenzhen in the first quarter of this year.

Shenzhen this year has incubated more than 1,000 Hong Kong startups and a significant increase is expected after cross-border transportation resumes to normal, according to the Shenzhen Human Resources and Social Security Bureau

The number of Hong Kong and Macao college graduates who applied for entrepreneurial subsidies in the first three months of this year surged to 136, eight times and 1.4 times the numbers in 2019 and 2020 respectively, according to the Shenzhen Human Resources and Social Security Bureau.

The city this year has incubated more than 1,000 Hong Kong startups and a significant increase is expected after cross-border transportation resumes to normal, according to the bureau.

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To help smooth their life and work in the new environment, Shenzhen plans to set up a one-stop service platform customized for Hong Kong and Macao college graduates.

The Hong Kong government’s Greater Bay Area Youth Employment Scheme is also a large contributing factor to their willingness to explore opportunities across the border.

Hong Kong Secretary for Labour and Welfare Law Chi-kwong wrote in his blog on Sunday that a total of 275 enterprises have provided above 2,000 posts, attracting more than 5,700 applications online in just three months.

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For instance, Shenzhen-based technology heavyweight Tencent received more than 600 applications for 86 positions so far, local newspaper Shenzhen Special Zone Daily reported on Thursday.