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The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (HKETO), Berlin of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) held a business seminar and reception entitled "Doing Business in Hong Kong" on September 21 (Warsaw time) to brief the Polish business community on the fundamentals of Hong Kong as one of the world's leading trading, financial and services centres. Mr Adam Szejnfeld, Secretary of State at the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Poland was one of the distinguished guests.
In his welcome remarks, Director of HKETO, Berlin, Mr Stephen Kai Wong, highlighted the huge business potential between Hong Kong and Poland. "The total bilateral trade in 2008 amounted to about EUR 650 million, with an impressive average annual growth rate of 26% over the last five years. Being the only country in Europe that has not experienced recession during the recent global economic downturn, Poland has the potential to expand its business to other parts of the world, including Hong Kong or China through Hong Kong," Mr Wong said.
"We hope that through this business seminar, which is the first one in Poland organised by the HKETO, Berlin, since its commencement of operation in March this year, more business opportunities between Poland and Hong Kong will be created," he added.
Mr Eckhart K. Gouras, Head of the Investment Promotion Unit, HKETO, Berlin explained in detail why Hong Kong is the ideal place to develop business in China and Asia for Polish businesspeople. "The fundamentals are the Basic Law, the constitutional document of Hong Kong, and the principle of 'One Country, Two Systems' which provides that the socialist system and policies shall not be practised in the HKSAR and Hong Kong's capitalist system and lifestyle shall remain unchanged for 50 years," Mr Gouras said.
Mr Gouras described further on how the Basic Law makes Hong Kong an excellent place to do business. "Freedom of speech, the press, association and movement are all guaranteed by the Basic Law. The principle of equality before the law provides a level playing field for Hong Kong residents and companies. An independent judiciary and a highly developed legal system provide further protection for doing business in Hong Kong," he said.
Mr Gouras also explained how Hong Kong was uniquely positioned as Asia's world city and the gateway to the mainland of China. "Hong Kong is the world's seventh and Asia's second largest Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) recipient. It has the highest FDI stock in Asia. The Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) provides preferential access to the mainland of China for Hong Kong products and Hong Kong based service companies. Polish companies with offices in Hong Kong can also profit from the preferential treatments provided by CEPA," he added.
He also highlighted similarities between the Polish and the Hong Kong economies. Poland has maintained continuous economic growth over the last 14 years and enjoys a low inflation rate of 1.8% as well as rising levels of consumption. Private consumption experienced a further boost as a result of lowering the income tax this year. Hong Kong's economy rebounded in the second quarter and resumed growth at 3.3% compared with the last quarter. A low inflation rate of 0.9% is expected for 2009, and private consumption grew by 4% in the second quarter. On tax, Hong Kong is well known for its low tax policy, with a maximum personal income tax rate at 15% and the company profits tax rate at 16.5%.
Investments in infrastructure have injected momentum into the economy of Hong Kong. The HKSAR Government has commissioned 10 major infrastructure projects, including the 29.6 km long Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, which will be twice as long as the Oresund Bridge between Sweden and Denmark; the new Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link with the tunnel section being half as long as the English Channel Tunnel. "The total length of highways in the Pearl River Delta region will be increased from 1,900 km in 2006 to 3,000 km in 2020 thereby increasing connectivity between Hong Kong and mainland China. Overall, the 10 infrastructure projects in Hong Kong will create about 250,000 new jobs," Mr Gouras explained.
In his concluding remarks, Mr Stephen Kai Wong explained why Polish companies should do business with China through Hong Kong. "Especially, in light of the recent financial and economic crisis, risk management is crucial for the operation of every company. When entering the Chinese market through Hong Kong, the risks for Polish companies are considerably lower because of Hong Kong's well developed legal and economic system. Hong Kong provides clarity, transparency, certainty and world-class services with no hidden costs. These give Polish companies the best chances for a sustainable development with long-term profits," he said.
The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, Berlin is the official Hong Kong SAR Government's representative in commercial relations and other economic and trade matters in Poland and seven other central and eastern European countries.
Ends/Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Issued at HKT 23:36
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