US$10 billion bonanza for Beijing, HK business

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, October 24, 2003

US$10 billion bonanza for Beijing, HK business

Deals worth almost US$10 billion are expected to be signed at the Beijing-Hong Kong Economic Co-operation Symposium which opened yesterday in Beijing.

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Deals worth almost US$10 billion are expected to be signed at the Beijing-Hong Kong Economic Co-operation Symposium which opened yesterday in Beijing.

Of the 177 projects under discussion, most involve the service sector including finance, logistics, commerce, tourism and law, government officials said at the symposium's opening ceremony.

The event this year, the seventh since Hong Kong's return to the motherland, will be given an extra boost by the recent announcement of a Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement. The agreement is a landmark free-trade pact between the Chinese mainland and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) signed in June that will come into effect on January 1, 2004.

Participants will discuss partnerships in projects for the Olympics and Beijing's urban infrastructure at the symposium, while exploring options in other fields.

Wang Qishan, the acting mayor of Beijing municipal government, said at the opening ceremony that the new pact will bring Hong Kong service providers more business opportunities while accelerating the globalization of Beijing's service sectors.

The municipal government is formulating polices and regulations to further promote co-operation between Beijing and Hong Kong, said Wang.

Henry Tang Ying-yen, financial secretary of the HKSAR's financial department, said the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement provided a historic opportunity for expanded co-operation between Hong Kong and the mainland.

"The HKSAR government supports co-operation between the two sides in service and trade since it helps to improve the competitiveness of the two regions on the international market,'' he said.

Hong Kong has been Beijing's third largest export market -- after the United States and Japan -- for years. Despite the impact of severe acute respiratory syndrome this year, trade between the two areas has registered impressive growth.

Beijing Municipal Bureau of Commerce statistics indicate that in the first half of 2003, Beijing's exports of goods and services to Hong Kong rose 11.3 per cent year-on-year to US$550 million. Imports leapt 41.6 per cent to US$520 million.

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