Hong Kong, ASEAN sign protocol to amend investment agreement

MANILA/HONG KONG, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- The First Protocol to Amend the Investment Agreement between ASEAN and Hong Kong was signed in Manila on Sunday, according to a press release from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government.

The protocol, signed during the 58th ASEAN Economic Ministers' Meeting and Related Meetings, enables Hong Kong enterprises to enjoy treatment no less favorable than that accorded to local or foreign enterprises in 10 ASEAN member states.

The signing of the protocol is set to bring about legal certainty, enhancing the investment environment and creating more investment flows, according to the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau of the HKSAR government.

ASEAN has been Hong Kong's third-largest destination of outward direct investment for four consecutive years, with a stock of 671.2 billion Hong Kong dollars (about 85.56 billion U.S. dollars), according to the bureau.

An extension of the free trade agreement and investment agreement to Timor-Leste, the 11th member state of ASEAN, is pending ASEAN's internal procedures, according to the press release.