***************************************
Following is the transcript (English portion) of the media session by the Financial Secretary, Mr John C Tsang, after arriving at Singapore today (November 10):
Reporter: How was your journey?
Financial Secretary: The journey was fine.
Reporter: Felt good? Good flight?
Financial Secretary: Very fast. We landed half an hour ago.
Reporter: Did you feel nervous before?
Financial Secretary: No. It's just a flight.
Reporter: Sir, what's the need for Hong Kong in this APEC meeting?
Financial Secretary: We've been an APEC member for a while now. It's a very important regional organisation. We've been taking part in it and because the region grows, we're just part of the growth. It's very important to us as an active member in this organisation because that is one of the most important organisations now in the world.
Reporter: Are you seeking to sign any agreements with any other governments?
Financial Secretary: In the APEC process, it's not about signing agreements but it's a very useful process for the ministers to get together to talk about the current situation and how we take the matter forward to sustain growth in this area.
Reporter: What are some of the items on the agenda when you will meet with your counterparts in over the next few days?
Financial Secretary: I think one of the most important things for us is to talk about the exit strategy. How we can manage that in a way that we'll not damage the stability of the region or hurt the growth of the region. This is something that we will talk about in the next few days.
(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)
Ends/Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Issued at HKT 19:34
NNNN
