Past Events

Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade Organization, called on the Chamber on 5 December to learn more about business development in Hong Kong. She was accompanied by Tomochika Uyama, Senior Advisor to the Director-General, and Nicole Mensa, Special Assistant and Advisor on Gender, Office of the Director-General. Chamber Chairman Agnes Chan, Vice Chairman Douglas Woo, CEO Patrick Yeung, and leaders from the Americas, HKCSI-Executive and Asia, Africa and Middle East committees welcomed the visitors.

Okonjo-Iweala updated members on the WTO's efforts in the globalization and reconfiguration of global supply chains through creating constructive and creative policy frameworks. She stressed the WTO's work in negotiating the Service Domestic Regulation Agreement, E-commerce Agreement and Investment Facilitation for Development Agreement. Despite rising economic concerns resulting from geopolitical tensions and polarization, global trade has remained resilient, with 75%-80% of goods trade taking place in WTO Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN) terms, Okonjo-Iweala added. She also expressed optimism for the use of AI which could optimize trade operations by reducing costs and increasing efficiency.

In response to a question by Mark C Michelson, Chairman of the Americas Committee, on the WTO's strategies in cooperation between member and non-member countries, Okonjo-Iweala stressed the importance of the WTO in creating forward-looking instruments in both multilateral and plurilateral agreements that align with the ever-changing global landscape. To Chan's query about ESG development, Okonjo-Iweala expressed her concerns about environmental threats, which she sees as existential and imminent. She revealed that the WTO is investigating interoperable carbon policy on a global scale to support net-zero targets by 2050. James Tong, Chairman of the HKCSI-Executive Committee, shared the business community's long-term confidence in Mainland-related enterprises, reflected in customers' demand for high-quality commodities and services, and the latest amendments to the terms of Trade in Services under the Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Agreement. General Committee member Wilson Kwong highlighted the robust growth of Hong Kong's aviation sector. With the new three-runway system in operation, the airport is projected to accommodate 120 million passengers and handle 10 million tonnes of cargo annually.

Yeung reiterated the confidence of Hong Kong businesses in expanding their operations, among other findings in the Chamber’s upcoming Business Prospects Survey 2024.

The moratorium on customs duties for electronic transmissions and the WTO's work program on e-commerce are approaching expiration unless a decision is made to extend them. The Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce (HKGCC) strongly supports continuing these measures and is dedicated to finding a viable solution.

The HKCSI-Executive Committee is a member of the Global Services Coalition.

Le Xia, Chief Economist for Asia-Pacific at BBVA Research, discussed the economic outlook for Latin America and long-term opportunities in the region during the Americas Committee meeting on 4 December.

Commenting on the monetary policies of several major LATAM countries, Xia noted their lead over the U.S. Fed in interest rate cuts. At the same time, inflation is expected to be more resilient over the next two years. He also delved into the forecasts concerning GDP growth, fiscal balance and currency exchange rates for the region.

Regarding business trends, Xia highlighted that LATAM nations are well-positioned in the fight against climate change with vast renewable energy resources and clean energy exports to the EU. He underscored the crucial role of private investment in per capita growth in these countries.