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The Chief Executive, Mr Donald Tsang, today (June 25) hosted a reception for about 300 top executives of foreign, Mainland and Taiwanese enterprises to welcome their establishment and expansion, and contribution to the economy of Hong Kong.
Addressing the audience at this annual event, Mr Tsang said, "One of the reasons companies are continuing to invest in Hong Kong when credit flows are squeezed and world markets are depressed is because of our enduring business advantages. These include our common law legal system underpinned by an independent judiciary, zero tolerance of corruption, freely convertible currency, low tax regime, free flow of information and liberal immigration policies."
Mr Tsang emphasised that Hong Kong is committed to maintaining the above-mentioned advantages, which together with the international business environment of Hong Kong, provide a familiar and secure base for businesses.
"In the face of the current global challenges we are working hard to return to the path of economic growth. We are also taking every opportunity to enhance our overall competitiveness. So far, we have committed over HK$87 billion in economic stimuli to lessen the impact of the economic downturn on Hong Kong.
"In addition we are implementing a number of initiatives to create new business opportunities and sustain economic growth in Hong Kong," said Mr Tsang.
Director-General of Investment Promotion, Mr Simon Galpin, joined Mr Tsang to welcome the business executives at the event.
This year, and for the first time at this reception, a large-scale panel displaying the corporate logos of over 280 companies that Invest Hong Kong has assisted in the past year was installed at the venue. Dubbed the "Invest Hong Kong Wall of Fame", the panel provides an impressive at-a-glance reference to the enterprises from different business sectors and different parts of the world that have set up or expanded their businesses in the city.
In the first half of 2009, Invest Hong Kong assisted 174 foreign, Mainland and Taiwanese enterprises set up or expand their operations in the city. This figure has already exceeded the department's mid-year goal which leads to an annual target of assisting 250 investment projects, and represents a 17.6% increase from the same period last year.
According to the information provided to Invest Hong Kong by these 174 enterprises, their total investments will create over 4,172 jobs for Hong Kong. Among this number, 1,600 job opportunities were created immediately upon the enterprises' establishment or expansion, while 2,572 are anticipated additional employment opportunities upcoming in the next two years.
Mr Galpin said, "We are encouraged by the positive results of our investment promotion efforts in the first six months of this year. Not only have we achieved a record high in terms of number of investment projects assisted and completed at this point in any year since the establishment of Invest Hong Kong in 2000, the figures also underline the confidence companies around the world have in Hong Kong."
Geographically, Europe and Asia Pacific accounted for 36.8% and 25.9% respectively of the total number of Invest Hong Kongˇ¦s completed investment projects in the first six months of 2009.
In recent years, more Mainland enterprises are starting to use Hong Kong as a springboard to go global and Invest Hong Kong has seen an encouraging increase in the number of investment projects from the Mainland. "Mainland China has become an increasingly important market for our department," Mr Galpin highlighted.
"Our 'On Your Marks, Get-Set, Go!' nationwide marketing campaign continues to promote the unique advantages of Hong Kong as a platform for Mainland enterprises to expand internationally. Through this campaign, we are also able to introduce all the support and services Invest Hong Kong can provide to them," added Mr Galpin.
Commenting on Invest Hong Kong's strategies for the second half of 2009, Mr Galpin elaborated, "In addition to attracting new investors to establish in Hong Kong, we also recognise the importance of retaining existing investors and to encourage and facilitate their expansion in our city. Our business sector-specific teams will continue to maintain strong working relationships with existing foreign, Mainland and Taiwanese enterprises and provide them with continued support and assistance to help their businesses grow."
Each year just before the commencement of the reception, a media briefing session is organised and Invest Hong Kong invites a number of businesses to share their experiences of investing or expanding in Hong Kong. This year, Mr Galpin accompanied the senior executives from four companies Invest Hong Kong assisted to speak at the session. The executives included the Chief Executive Officer of China Aircraft Services Limited, Dr Angus Cheung; Vice President and Managing Director, Asia Pacific of Rackspace, Mr Jim Fagan; Director of Redeem Asia Ltd, Mr Jamie Rae; and General Manager of The Big Bus Company, Mr Kengi Wan. Their company profiles are outlined below:
China Aircraft Services Limited
China Aircraft Services Limited (CASL) was established in 1995 as a joint venture of China National Aviation Corporation (Group) Limited, Hutchison Whampoa (China) Limited, United Airlines and China Airlines. CASL employs more than 1,000 staff to provide aircraft maintenance, cabin cleaning and ground support services at Hong Kong International Airport. CASL supports its shareholder airlines' operations in Hong Kong and also serves many international airlines. In May 2009, the company officially opened its new aircraft maintenance hangar, which represents an additional HK$400 million investment by CASL into Hong Kong, providing 10,000 square metres of maintenance space.
Rackspace
Rackspace, one of the world's leading specialists in IT hosting, delivers computing-as-a-service, integrating the industry's best technologies into a flexible service offering, making computing more reliable and affordable. Rackspace launched its Asia headquarters and data centre in Hong Kong in 2008 to meet global customer demand. The new data centre represents a US$20 million investment and occupies a gross area of approximately 9,500 square feet which is expandable to about 18,000 gross square feet. The data centre opened in Hong Kong is in addition to Rackspace's five data centres operating in the US and three in the UK.
Redeem Asia Ltd
Redeem Asia Ltd specialises in the recovery, recycling and re-use of digital devices including mobile phones, digital cameras, iPods and other related items. Headquartered in the UK, Redeem also operates in Ireland, Italy and Turkey. The company's strategy involves the implementation of digital device recovery programmes across Asia. With environmental experience and industry accreditations, the company is ideally positioned to target mobile network operators, manufacturers, businesses and consumers across the continent. The opening of a sales and processing plant in Hong Kong is a key move for long-term growth in markets including China, India, Africa and South America.
The Big Bus Company
The Big Bus Company began business as a family operation in London in 1991. Starting with only two buses its focus on entertainment, customer service and passionate local knowledge enabled the company to become one of the largest open-top bus tour operators in the world. Big Bus currently operates tours in London, Dubai and Philadelphia. In 2007, the company entered into an investment partnership with the Al Fahim Group, which has allowed it to take forward its global expansion plans. This commenced in December 2008 with Big Bus Tours setting up operations in Hong Kong, Asia's most popular city destination. The company is also looking at expanding into the South East Asian region.
Ends/Thursday, June 25, 2009
Issued at HKT 20:17
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