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The Chief Executive, Mr C Y Leung, expressed his gratitude to the Indonesian Government for its agreement to the establishment of a Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Jakarta (Jakarta ETO) at a meeting with the Vice President, Mr Jusuf Kalla, in Indonesia today (September 16).
Noting that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as a whole is Hong Kong's second largest trading partner, Mr Leung said, "The establishment of the Jakarta ETO will help identify business opportunities in Indonesia for Hong Kong investors, and enhance our bilateral trade and economic relations with the region. As the ASEAN Secretariat is located in Jakarta, it will greatly facilitate the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government's follow-up work on the Hong Kong-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement."
The total value of Hong Kong's merchandise trade with ASEAN exceeded $825 billion in 2014 and that with Indonesia alone exceeded $40 billion.
"The ASEAN countries including Indonesia are major economies along the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road of the 'Belt and Road' initiative. The new ETO in Jakarta will further enhance our 'super-connector' role to bridge trade and investment flow between China and ASEAN, and underline the part Hong Kong can play in the 'Belt and Road' initiative. The economic and cultural ties between Indonesia and Hong Kong would also be brought to a new height," Mr Leung said, adding that currently 10 per cent of the total trade between the Mainland and ASEAN is already routed through Hong Kong.
The HKSAR Government will continue to follow up on the detailed arrangements related to the setting up of the new ETO, and will complete the preparatory work and internal procedures as soon as possible, with a view to establishing the Jakarta ETO in 2016.
Ends/Wednesday, September 16, 2015
Issued at HKT 18:21
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