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Following is the speech by the Chief Executive, Mr Tung Chee Hwa, at a reception to mark the launch of the Financial Times Asia edition at International Finance Centre Two in Central this (October 8) evening:
Marjorie, John, friends, ladies and gentlemen,
I am delighted to join you all today to celebrate the launch of the Financial Times (FT) Asia edition. This also marks the expansion of the FT's operations in Asia, with Hong Kong as FT's regional headquarters.
You know in my long business career, I have to tell you I read the Financial Times everyday. And that I also want to tell you this habit has not changed in the six and a half years I have been Chief Executive of Hong Kong. To me, the Financial Times is not just a business newspaper. It is an international newspaper that really provides in-depth and quality coverage and analysis of all those very complex global issues, as well as reports about activities in this region and everywhere else in the world.
The Asia edition would provide readers with a deeper understanding and broader coverage of news, business and politics in different countries and regions in Asia. And particularly, I think it's so important to be able to let our friends in America and Europe understand through you what is going in this part of the world. It is a very important and, for FT, a very timely move as Asian economies are among the fastest growing in the world, and the countries in Asia are taking on growing importance on the world stage.
What FT has done and what Pearson is doing here really demonstrate the foresight of the group, what Marjorie was talking about - that the very clear foresight as to how to position the Pearson group and FT in Asia. I see the launch of the Asia edition as a vote of confidence by Pearson and the FT group in Asia, and setting up the regional headquarters here as a vote of confidence in Hong Kong. I strongly believe this confidence is well placed. And there are a number of reasons for that.
First of all, Hong Kong is Asia's world city. It is an ideal place to live, to work and to do business. And to a building like this and views like these, I don't think you would dispute with me. Over the past six years, with the advent of globalisation and the bursting of the bubble economy, Hong Kong has undergone a painful process of economic restructuring. Global economic trends and rapid development of the economy on the Mainland have demanded that we reposition ourselves for the future. The signing and implementation of the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) with the Mainland and the increased cooperation between Hong Kong and the Pearl River Delta will further enhance Hong Kong's position in the international marketplace.
Thus we will consolidate and enhance our position as an international financial and logistics centre, a preferred tourist destination and a trade and business services hub. We will continue to invest heavily in education to ensure we have the human capital required to serve Hong Kong' s needs. We will continue to do more to improve our environment and, ladies and gentlemen, let me tell you, SARS was a rude awakening to us to how much more we needed to do in that respect. But we would continue to do more to improve our environment and to generally enhance the quality of life for all our citizens. As a place where East meets West, we will continue to encourage culture diversity. We will also upgrade our physical infrastructure to ensure that we remain the major transport and logistics hub.
Second, we will continue to protect the basic tenets that underpin our development as a society - the rule of law upheld by an independent judiciary; a level playing field for business; a clean and efficient administration; enhancement of corporate governance which already is amongst the best in the world; and the preservation of all forms of freedoms we enjoy today, including press freedom and the free flow of information. Let me emphasise to you, especially at a gathering by the Financial Times, that the preservation of all forms of freedoms and particularly press freedom and free flow of information is very important to us.
Ladies and gentlemen, we are very happy that the Financial Times has made this investment in Hong Kong. I think it speaks volumes for Hong Kong's future as the premier international business and financial centre in Asia. And, I am sure it also speaks volumes about the foresight of those who made the decision to base your regional headquarters here in Hong Kong!
Thank you very much indeed.
End/Wednesday, October 8, 2003
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