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The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, Brussels (HKETO, Brussels) told Romanian companies at a business seminar in Bucharest on March 21 (Bucharest time) how Hong Kong could help them seize Hong Kong's business opportunities and the opportunties offered by China's visionary Belt and Road Initiative.
At the seminar in Bucharest, which was co-organised by HKETO, Brussels, and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, the Deputy Representative of the HKETO, Brussels, Miss Drew Lai, noted that relations between Hong Kong and Romania have been developing very rapidly since the opening of the office of the Romanian Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong two years ago and the signing of two important agreements. During the visit of the Financial Secretary, Mr John C Tsang, to Bucharest in November last year, Hong Kong and Romania signed an agreement for the avoidance of double taxation.
"Hong Kong is one of the most business-friendly places in the world, and it has a simple and low taxation system," Miss Lai said. "Once ratified, this tax agreement will provide excellent financial incentives for Romanian companies to do business or invest in Hong Kong, where corporate tax is a maximum of 16.5 per cent of profits."
In June 2015, Hong Kong and Romania signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Co-operation in Wine-related Businesses, which encourage more Romanian wine producers to make good use of Hong Kong's advantages as a duty-free port with zero duty for wine imports, and as a regional logistics hub. Since last November, they can also benefit from instant customs clearance at all the ports in Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Guangzhou and Shenzhen for wine entering the Mainland from Hong Kong.
Miss Lai said she was confident that economic relations between Hong Kong and Romania would get closer still in the coming years, as both stood to play a role in a very exciting development strategy proposed by China, the Belt and Road Initiative. Romania is one of the 60 countries covered by the Belt and Road.
The 21st Century Maritime Silk Road will create new demand for shipping services and Miss Lai noted that Romania, with its plans to build a "Black Sea-Caspian Sea Freight Corridor", is set to become a hub connecting other inland destinations in Europe to Central Asia and eastwards to China.
"Romanian companies will find it advantageous to establish a presence in Hong Kong, using our maritime services to tap into the markets of the Belt and Road countries. We take pride in the fact that Hong Kong has always been the 'super-connector' connecting the Mainland with the rest of the world, and we stand ready to help Romanian companies seize the far-reaching opportunities this project will provide," Miss Lai said.
Miss Lai also briefed the participants about new business sectors, such as innovation and technology, that are developing rapidly in Hong Kong, and about Hong Kong's flourishing start-up ecosystem.
This was one of a series of seminars the HKETO, Brussels will be organising or supporting around Europe in the following weeks and months. Other events were held in Venice, Italy (March 15) and Milan, Italy (March 22). The HKETO, Brussels will next be promoting Hong Kong and its role in the Belt and Road Initiative at business seminars in Madrid, Spain (April 12), Barcelona, Spain (April 13) and Brussels, Belgium (April 20).
Ends/Thursday, March 24, 2016
Issued at HKT 00:01
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