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The rise of Central China is the impetus for economic and trade development between Hong Kong and Central China while exchanges and interactions on other fronts will be more frequent and have a more promising prospect, the Chief Executive, Mr Donald Tsang, said today (September 26).
Mr Tsang was speaking at a Central China Business Summit, which was a highlight of Expo Central China 2006. Vice Premier Ms Wu Yi, Vice Chairman of CPPCC Mr Xu Kuangdi and Minister of Commerce Mr Bo Xilai also attended the forum.
"Investors from Hong Kong have always been highly interested in Central China. As the amount of investment by Hong Kong investors in coastal provinces and the extent of development in these regions approach a point of saturation, objectively speaking, there is now the need for investors to seek out new potential markets and re-invest in inner regions of China. In recent years, many Hong Kong entrepreneurs have been actively looking for opportunities to invest in Central China," Mr Tsang said.
"As the centre for international finance, trade and shipping, Hong Kong can play its unique role and leverage on its value-added capacity on three fronts with regard to the promotion of the rise of Central China."
First: attract investors and capital. Hong Kong's successful investors can spread the messages of Central China's latest development, thus attracting foreign investment and jointly engaging in the development of this region.
In addition, as an international financial centre, Hong Kong possesses great financing ability, and can give full play to its abilities by raising development funds for enterprises based in Central China.
Second: Hong Kong can assist enterprises based in Central China in upgrading their industries and promotion brand name products. Investors from Hong Kong can also assist Central China enterprises in strengthening technological investment and increasing industry output.
Meanwhile, by making use of Hong Kong's status as an international metropolitan, domestic enterprises can set up branches in Hong Kong, and improve the image of their brands through assistance provided by our market experts, so that their products can be ready for the international market.
Third: enhance the quality of service industries. Hong Kong is a highly developed service-oriented economy with excellent performance in a number of areas including logistics, finance, accounting, commerce, trade, advertisement, conferences and expositions. The implementation of CEPA has created additional opportunities as well, attracting more specialised personnel from Hong Kong to set up businesses in Central China and other parts of China to meet the domestic needs to upgrade their service industries.
Mr Tsang and the members of the delegation later toured the Hong Kong exhibition booths at Expo Central China 2006 at the Hunan International Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Dedicated to promoting the rise of Central China, Expo Central China 2006 is organised jointly by the Ministry of Commerce; State Administration of Taxation; State Administration for Industry and Commerce; State Administration of Radio, Film and Television; China National Tourism Administration; China Council for the Promotion of International Trade; China Federation of Industry and Commerce; China Federation of Industrial Economics; and the People¡¦s Governments of Shanxi, Anhui, Jiangxi, Henan, Hubei and Hunan Provinces. Hong Kong Trade Development Council is a supporting organisation of the event.
In the afternoon, the Chief Executive and delegation members visited three enterprises in Changsha. They first toured the production plant of Broad Air Conditioning, a leading manufacturer of non-electric chillers. They were told of the latest development in environmentally friendly technology.
The second enterprise was Sany Heavy Industry Holding Company Ltd, which was a pioneer of shares reform on the Mainland. The company had set up an office in Hong Kong as a platform to raise capital for business expansion.
The delegation's last stop was Sunchime Cartoon Group, one of the largest digital cartoon production bases in China. The visitors were briefed by the company¡¦s senior management on how they had developed licensed products from a cartoon character created by themselves and how they made use of Hong Kong to market their products globally.
In the evening, Mr Tsang attended a banquet hosted by the Changsha Municipal People's Government before returning to Hong Kong. He was appreciative of Hunan Government¡¦s support for the tour and was confident that co-operation between the two places would continue to grow.
Ends/Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Issued at HKT 20:38
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