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STH's speech at luncheon in Hamburg (English only) (with photo)
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     Following is a speech by the Secretary for Transport and Housing, Professor Anthony Cheung Bing-leung, at a luncheon for the Hamburg business community in Hamburg, Germany today (April 16, Hamburg time):

Mrs Nienstedt , distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,

     Guten Tag.  Good afternoon.  On behalf of the Hong Kong maritime delegation, I thank you all for coming today.  I am most honoured to have the opportunity to meet with such a respectable audience from the business community of Hamburg.  

Hamburg and Hong Kong
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     Choosing Hamburg as the visit destination reflects the importance the Hong Kong maritime industry attaches to this great city.  Indeed, Hamburg and Hong Kong have much in common.  We are both port cities and have a long maritime history; we are both served with a strong base of shipowners.  Both of our cities enjoy excellent geographical location with a vast hinterland which has enabled our development into an important transport and logistics hub.  While Hong Kong is the gateway to China, Hamburg is, as I understand, not only the transport gateway to Northern Europe, but also the gateway for Chinese companies to enter the European market, with some 500 Chinese firms maintaining offices in Hamburg, more than in any other city in Continental Europe.

Global development trend
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     With the shift of international trade towards Asia, and China in particular, in the new Pacific Century, linking up the East and the West has become an all the more pressing theme of almost every business, including, of course, maritime.  Of the world's top 10 busiest container ports, nine are in Asia and seven in China, including Hong Kong.  

     China's latest "One Belt, One Road" vision and the recent launch of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) have further put the Asian region in the global spotlight, opening up immense opportunities for development and investment and expected to significantly transform the economic and trade landscapes of participating countries and markets.  

     The "One Belt, One Road" vision seeks to foster closer economic co-operation through vast regions of Asia, Africa and Europe involving over 60 countries along the route.   "One Belt" refers to the "Silk Road Economic Belt" which begins in Xi'an in Northwest China, stretches west through Urumqi, Asia Minor, Russia, all the way to the centre of Europe (including Germany).  "One Road" refers to the "21st Century Maritime Silk Road" that begins from Fujian Province of China, through Southeast Asia (Malacca Strait), India, East Africa, the Red Sea, all the way into the Mediterranean.

     The huge development potential to be unleashed from the countries and economies along these road and sea routes is hardly measurable, and it is an opportunity no one can afford to lose.  Hong Kong, as a Special Administrative Region of China, stands ready to take part in and benefit from this development vision.  We believe we have a special role to play because of our strategic location as well as the unique qualities and strengths that Hong Kong enjoys under the "One Country, Two Systems" constitutional arrangement that allows our city to be distinctive.

Connectivity
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     Global business today is all about connectivity, through infrastructure, economic development, cultural exchange, trade and finance, maritime, etc.  Connectivity is Hong Kong's core strength, including "hardware", meaning the physical strengths, as well as "software", the institutional advantages, the basis on which Hong Kong has thrived over the past century.  The fact that Hong Kong is strategically located along the East-West trade route makes its connectivity even better entrenched.

Hong Kong as a transport hub
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     Hong Kong has world-class infrastructure in its sea, air and land transport.  Right at the south doorstep of Mainland China and blessed with a natural deep harbour, the Hong Kong Port has evolved from a small trading port into one of the world's busiest container ports.  It is served by 350 container liner services weekly, connecting to about 510 destinations worldwide.

     In aviation, the Hong Kong International Airport has been for several years the busiest cargo airport and ranks among the world's busiest passenger airports, registering an average of about 1 100 daily flights connecting to about 180 destinations worldwide.  Last year, a total of 4.38 million tonnes of cargo and over 63 million passengers were handled.  From Hong Kong, one can reach all Asian economies within four hours' flight time and half of the world's population within five hours - that is, including the Mainland of China, Japan, Korea, Indonesia, Southeast Asia and part of India.

     On the land side, Hong Kong enjoys a wide choice of multi-modal transportation links connecting to various parts of Mainland China, facilitated by seven (soon to be eight) land boundary control points.  Close to 20 000 goods vehicles make their crossing every day.

Infrastructural development
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     Hong Kong is investing in major infrastructure projects to enhance the city's transport links with Mainland China and the rest of the world.

     We are pressing ahead with the construction of a mega bridge that connects Hong Kong with the western Pearl River Delta (PRD) region, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge.  You would like to know the PRD is China's single largest GDP contributor and largest exporter, accounting for about 27 per cent of China's exports. When completed, the 29.6 kilometres Main Bridge will become the world's longest bridge-cum-tunnel sea crossing, strategically connecting the three cities of Hong Kong, Zhuhai and Macau.  The travelling time between the Mainland city of Zhuhai and Hong Kong's (Kwai Tsing) Container Port will be drastically reduced from the present three-and-a-half hours to just about 75 minutes; and between Zhuhai and the Hong Kong International Airport from four hours to just 45 minutes.

     The Hong Kong Section of Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link is underway, which upon completion will half Hong Kong-Guangzhou journey time from 100 to 48 minutes, and connect Hong Kong to the national high speed rail grid, taking only 10 hours to reach Beijing, for example, compared to 24 hours today.

     On port development, to tie in with the global shipping trend of deploying mega vessels, we are dredging our port basin and its approach channels from the existing 15 metres to 17.5 metres deep.  Works will be completed next year; by then the new generation of ultra-large container ships will be able to access the Hong Kong Port at all tides.

     To cope with ever-growing air traffic demands, the Hong Kong Airport Authority is embarking on a HK$141.5 billion (or Euros 17 billion) project to construct a Third Runway for the airport which also entails the reclamation of 650 hectares of land and the addition of more terminal and cargo handling facilities.   The future Three-Runway System will increase the practical maximum capacity of the airport by over 60 per cent, to handle about 100 million passengers and 8.9 million tonnes of cargo per year by 2030.

"Software" connectivity
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     Hong Kong's global-ness will not be sustainable if we rely solely on physical connectivity.  Indeed, what makes Hong Kong distinct is our institutional strengths.  Under "One Country, Two Systems", Hong Kong's Basic Law allows us to maintain our open market economy, our free port status, the rule of law and independent judicial system, our own financial system and currency which is freely convertible, and free flow of talent, capital and information.  Hong Kong is a bilingual city, with both Chinese and English widely used in business transactions and within government.  It has the most cosmopolitan outlook among Chinese cities.

     We are well integrated into international business and take part in various world bodies like the International Maritime Organization, International Civil Aviation Organization, World Trade Organization and World Health Organization.  Both the US-based Heritage Foundation and Canada's Fraser Institute have consistently ranked Hong Kong the world's number one free economy.

Hong Kong as an international maritime centre
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     Hong Kong's global connectivity and international character is well appreciated and emphasised by China's Central Authorities.  The National "12th Five Year Economic Development Plan" (2011-2015) has expressly supported Hong Kong to consolidate and enhance its position as an international maritime centre, a policy objective high on the agenda of the Hong Kong Government.

     With the continuous expansion of China's maritime and shipbuilding industries, Hong Kong's maritime services have enormous potential for further growth.  Hong Kong is well positioned to serve both as a "springboard" for Mainland maritime companies to "go global", as well as a platform for international maritime companies to tap the Mainland market.  Hong Kong has what it takes to become an important international maritime services hub for China and the Asia-Pacific region.

     Hong Kong is home to a strong base of shipowners together owning and managing 8 per cent of the deadweight tonnage of the world's commercial fleet, and a cluster of over 700 shipping-related firms providing diversified maritime services in ship management, ship broking and chartering, maritime insurance, legal services and arbitration.

     For decades, Hong Kong has been a prime centre in Asia for solving disputes by arbitration.  Hong Kong's arbitral awards are enforceable in some 150 signatory states of the New York Convention.  On insurance, there are over 90 companies providing marine and cargo insurance, and seven of the 13 members of the International Group of P&I Clubs have offices in Hong Kong, the largest cluster of representatives outside London.  The Hong Kong Shipping Register ranks number four in the world, crossing the 95 million mark in terms of gross tonnage.  Hong Kong-registered ships are among the best performers in the world in terms of Port State Control detention rates .

     We attach utmost importance to the grooming of talents in Hong Kong.  Last year, the Government set up a HK$100 million (Euros 12 million equivalent) Maritime and Aviation Training Fund.  Under this Fund, we support various incentive schemes, scholarships, summer internships and overseas exchange programmes with universities abroad, so as to attract new blood into the maritime and aviation industries.  For those who are already in the field, we support them to acquire higher accreditation and professional qualifications.

German-Hong Kong relations
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     Ladies and Gentlemen: Although I have spoken at length on maritime, we must not lose sight of the expanding German-Hong Kong relations in all aspects.  Germany is Hong Kong's largest trading partner within the European Union.  Hong Kong also plays a significant role in the China-Germany trade, with 6.5 per cent of such trade routed through Hong Kong, amounting to some EUR 8.9 billion.  In Hong Kong, the German Swiss International School is known to be consistently producing top-grade students and is among the most sought-after international schools.  As of June 2014, over 330 German companies had offices in Hong Kong, engaging in trade, transport and logistics, consulting and financial services.  Among them, over 210 are regional headquarters or regional offices, using Hong Kong as a gateway for doing business with Mainland China and the region.

     Before I close, may I draw your attention to the forthcoming Fifth Asian Logistics and Maritime Conference (ALMC) to be held in Hong Kong on November 17 and 18.  This is an annual signature event for the region, attracting over 1 600 participants from more than 30 countries or economies last year.  We expect an even bigger turn-out this year.  Hong Kong welcomes you all to the ALMC!  Ms Jenny Koo from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council will tell you more about it before the end of this luncheon.  Thank you very much.

Ends/Thursday, April 16, 2015
Issued at HKT 21:13

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