The study appears to undermine an assumption about public attitudes.

The default assumption that younger people are keener on so-called sustainable investment than their older peers has taken a knock in Hong Kong. A study of investors by Schroders found that “Generation X” – those aged 38 to 50 – are more motivated by this approach than Millennials.

The findings come from the Schroders Global Investor Study (GIS), which measured the views of over 25,000 investors, including 500 investors from Hong Kong.

Some 63 per cent of Hong Kong Generation X investors said they “always consider sustainability factors” when selecting an investment product, compared with 49 per cent of Millennials (18 to 37 years old). In addition, almost half (48 per cent) of Hong Kong Baby Boomers (51 to 70 years old) said they always consider sustainability factors. The average for Hong Kong investors was 53 per cent, the study found.

The findings come out amid a torrent of comment and publicity on sustainable investment ideas, such as putting money to work to protect the environment, improving how companies disclose their activities, and protecting vulnerable groups. It is often assumed that younger adults tend to be more fired up about such ideas than older investors, but this is not always the case.

Overall, slightly more than half (52 per cent) of Hong Kong investors believe that their investments can have a direct impact and significantly contribute to a more sustainable world. By generations, Hong Kong’s Gen-X investors again led the way. More than half (58 per cent) of them believed that their investments could have a direct impact, compared with 53 per cent of Millennials. It was 37 per cent for Hong Kong Baby Boomers.