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In celebrating the Year of the Rabbit, the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (HKETO), San Francisco, hosted a series of receptions in various cities on the west coast of the United States. At the Spring Reception in Los Angeles today (February 17, Los Angeles time), more than 150 guests attended.
In his welcome remarks, the Director of the HKETO, San Francisco, Mr Jeff Leung, pointed out the close ties between Hong Kong and the United States as well as connections between California and Hong Kong.
"In 2010, California's exports to Hong Kong increased to a record high of US$6.8 billion, an increase of 16.5% in 2009. We are also happy to see a lot of California companies setting up offices in Hong Kong," he said.
"Los Angeles and Hong Kong have a lot in common. We treasure the partnership and look forward to further strengthening the business, trade and cultural ties between Hong Kong and Los Angeles, as well as California," he continued.
The Hong Kong Commissioner for Economic and Trade Affairs, USA, Mr Donald Tong, also addressed the guests at the reception.
"Under the 'One Country, Two Systems' principle, Hong Kong people continue to run Hong Kong as a highly autonomous region. Our economy in 2010 continued to benefit from the momentum of robust growth in Mainland China and regional markets. Our exports and imports increased by more than 20% compared to the previous year. The unemployment rate declined to 4%," he said.
"While we in Hong Kong continue to build our traditional economic pillars and nurture others, a noteworthy development has been Hong Kong's emergence as a testing ground for the internationalisation of the Renminbi," he continued.
Among these developments is the introduction of a pilot programme, allowing Hong Kong and foreign companies to settle cross-border trade transactions in Renminbi with eligible enterprises in Mainland China. Mr Tong encouraged companies from California to take advantage of this development.
Hong Kong is also developing as an international capital formation centre. "In 2009, Hong Kong led the world in IPO funds raised with US$31 billion. More IPO funds were raised in 2010, around US$57 billion," said Mr Tong.
Another booming business in Hong Kong is the wine business. US wine exports to Hong Kong increased five-fold in the past three years to US$49 million in 2009-10. "We certainly hope to see a greater variety and volume of California wines coming to Hong Kong," Mr Tong concluded.
Ends/Friday, February 18, 2011
Issued at HKT 14:33
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