E-commerce is a key to Hong Kong's continued competitiveness, a senior trade and industry official said on November 4.

"It enables our firms to find ways to be more responsive to changing market trends and to conduct business activities more efficiently and more cost-effectively," Secretary for Trade and Industry Chau Tak Hay said at the opening ceremony of the first center for the advancement of e-commerce technologies in Hong Kong.

The past few years have seen a very rapid growth in the use of information technology, and in particular, the growth of the Internet has been phenomenal, Chau said.

The Asian-Pacific region is forecast to be the fastest growing area in the world in Internet usage, he said, adding that "as one of the leading business centers in the world, we in Hong Kong must ensure that we keep pace with developments in information technology."

The potential market that e-commerce can generate in cyberspace is enormous, he said. There is little doubt that this new form of doing business will become a powerful engine for future economic growth, Chau stressed.

"It is therefore imperative that we grasp the opportunities brought by e-commerce quickly or else we will lose out," he added.

With its high flexibility and cost-effectiveness, Chau said, e- commerce will be a particularly suitable means to enhance the businesses of small and medium-sized enterprises, which constitute the bulk of Hong Kong companies.

The secretary emphasized that the government fully recognizes the important role that it can play in encouraging the use and development of e-commerce in Hong Kong.

"We are committed to providing a favorable environment for e- commerce to thrive and flourish in Hong Kong," Chau said.

The government will in the near future introduce an electronic service delivery scheme to establish an information infrastructure with an open and common interface, Chau said.

"Our aim is not only to provide more efficient and better quality services to the community, but also to encourage the community to accept e-commerce as an integral part of our daily life," Chau said.

"We also recognize the importance of a sound legal framework for the adoption of electronic transactions in Hong Kong," he said. "An Electronic Transactions Bill is now going through our legislature."

Full support and participation of the community to further promote the development of e-commerce is also needed, Chau stressed. (Xinhua)