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The Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology, Mr Joseph W P Wong, will leave Hong Kong tonight (September 19) for a four-day visit to Australia.
Mr Wong will first stop in Sydney where he will meet senior Australian government officials and the local business community to promote Hong Kong's trade interest.
He will then fly to Cairns to participate in an Informal Ministerial Meeting of the World Trade Organization to be attended by Trade Ministers of economies including the US, Australia, New Zealand and Chile.
Mr Wong and his ministerial counterparts are expected to review developments since the suspension of negotiations on the Doha Development Agenda and discuss strategies for reviving the talks in the months ahead.
While in Cairns, Mr Wong will take the opportunity to hold bilateral meetings with the Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Trade, Mr Mark Vaile, and New Zealand's Minister for Trade and Trade Negotiations, Mr Phil Goff.
Mr Wong will return to Hong Kong on September 23.
Ends/Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Issued at HKT 16:00
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