Chamber China Committee Chairman and CEO of Dragonair Stanley Hui led a 36-member Chamber delegation to visit five major cities in the Yangtze River Delta, namely Hangzhou, Ningbo, Wenzhou, Shanghai and Kunshan, from December 4 to 10, 2002.

Zhejang Vice Governor Ye Rongbao  and Shanghai Vice Mayor Jiang Sixian, were among the local governors and mayors who briefed members on the latest developments in their cities.

"We are all very impressed by the dynamic economies of these major cities in the Yangtze River Delta," Mr Hui said on returning to Hong Kong. "All areas welcome Hong Kong investors and expressed their desire to strengthen cooperation with their counterparts here in areas of accounting, finance and law, among others. They all are very eager to learn from Hong Kong because they know we have world-class services."

Chamber CEO, Dr Eden Woon, who also joined the mission, said Hong Kong businesses should broaden their horizons so that while pushing economic integration with the Pearl River Delta, they can also leverage the huge business and cooperation opportunities provided by the YRD.

"Moreover, various regions in the YRD have achieved consensus on their respective positions in driving the growth of the entire area. We, in the PRD, should learn from their experiences and follow their successes," he added.

Officials explained the secrets behind the Yangtze River Delta's strong growth since China adopted its opening door policy. Topping the list were clear positioning on industrial development, its geographical location, well-developed transportation facilities and constantly improving infrastructure. All cities in the delta also take advantage of Shanghai's robust growth to expand their market reach both at home and abroad. In addition, local governments' support for businesses, its rich pool of human resources and the high education standard also contribute to the rapid development of the YRD, they said.

During the trip, delegates also had the opportunity to visit some of the region's leading private enterprises. Over the past decade, these private Mainland enterprises have been learning the skills of business and are striving to reach the level of their Western counterparts. They also visited a number of enterprises in the State Class Economic and Technological Development Zones of Hangzhou, Ningbo, Kunshan, as well as Ningbo Free Trade Zone.