China Committee
Thomas Leung, Managing Partner, Markets, PwC China, briefed members on a report titled Chinese Cities of Opportunities 2023 at the China Committee meeting on 26 June. At the same meeting, Eric Fok was re-elected Chairman, while SH Chan, Edmond Yew and Felix Lee were re-elected Vice Chairmen.
Chamber Deputy Chairman Agnes Chan attended the opening ceremony of the Hong Kong and Macao-Zhejiang Week and Zhejiang and Hong Kong Cooperation Theme Forum 2023. The event was held on 26 June and organized by the People’s Government of Zhejiang Province. In his speech, Chief Executive John Lee said the governments of Zhejiang and Hong Kong had jointly established 12 key areas of cooperation. These include finance, technological innovation, economic and trade investment, aviation, education, youth exchanges, culture and tourism, talent and civil servant exchanges, medical and health care, environmental protection, law and dispute resolution, and facilitating the development of Hong Kong people in the Mainland.
Petrina Tam, Convenor of the GBA Working Group, attended the 2023 Ningbo-Hong Kong Economic Cooperation Forum on 27 June alongside political and business leaders from Ningbo. The event was jointly organized by the HKTDC and the government of Ningbo, Zhejiang Province. The two cities are exploring collaboration to drive China’s high-quality development and create new momentum for Hong Kong’s economy.
The forum also highlighted the advantages of the two cities, and how win-win outcomes could be achieved. For example, Ningbo enterprises were encouraged to use Hong Kong as a platform to expand their business overseas while also bringing in overseas investments.
The Fujian-Hong Kong Economic and Trade Cooperation Conference and signing ceremony for key cooperation projects took place on 27 June. The event was jointly presented by the CPC Fujian Provincial Committee and Fujian Provincial People’s Government, and co-organized by the HKGCC.
Chamber Deputy Chairman Agnes was one of the officiating guests and a witness to the signing ceremony with Zhou Zuyi, Secretary the CPC Fujian Provincial Committee, Eric Chan, Chief Secretary for Administration, Yin Zonghua, Deputy Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR, and Pan Yundong, Deputy Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China in the HKSAR.
Edmond Yue, General Committee member and Co-convenor of the Belt & Road Working Group, attended the 18th China International Small and Medium Enterprises Fair (CISMEF) in Guangzhou on 27 June. The fair aimed to provide a strong platform for SMEs around the world to expand exchanges and cooperation.
Chamber Deputy Chairman Agnes Chan and China Committee Chairman Eric Fok joined a seminar titled “Helping to Improve People’s Livelihood” on 29 June, which was co-organized by the HKGCC. Chan delivered a speech on behalf of the Chamber, and exchanged views with other major chambers on the achievements of Hong Kong’s industrial and commercial sectors in helping to improve people’s livelihood.
China Committee Members visited the LegCo Complex for luncheon on 3 July, hosted by the Chamber’s LegCo Representative Jeffrey Lam. He explained his duties at the Legislative Council, and gave member a tour of the complex, including the main chamber, garden and the hall of history.
Mai Xiongguang, Secretary-General of Shenzhen Guangming District, led a delegation to the Chamber on 5 July, where they were received by Felix Lee, Vice Chairman of the China Committee.
Mai briefed members on the development of Guangming Science City, which is scheduled to be completed at the end of this year. As a key part of Shenzhen’s status as a comprehensive national science centre, it is expected to become a world-class hub by 2025. Guangming District also has a solid industrial foundation, making it a strategic base for different industries looking to relocate their headquarters. To protect the area’s abundant ecological and water resources, authorities are actively promoting green and low-carbon development.
Edmond Yew, China Committee Vice Chairman, attended a meeting hosted by Luo Lianjin, Counsel of Department of Commerce of Guangdong Province, on 6 July, where they discussed further business exchanges between Hong Kong and Guangdong.
A delegation led by Zhang Tong, Second-level Inspector of Beijing Investment Promotion Services Centre, visited the Chamber on 10 July. They were received by Petrina Tam, Convenor of GBA Working Group. The two sides discussed how to optimize the content and themes of the 26th Beijing-Hong Kong Economic Cooperation Symposium, which will be held on 29-30 November in Hong Kong. Tam and Chamber representatives attended the symposium’s first preparatory meeting on 12 July.
The China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) will hold its first “China International Supply Chain Expo” in Beijing from 28 November to 2 December. The CCPIT’s representative offices in Hong Kong and Macao organized a hybrid seminar to promote the expo on 11 July in Hong Kong. Wendy Lo, Assistant Director, China Affairs & Projects represented the Chamber at the seminar.
Zhu Wei, Deputy Director, Guangdong Provincial Development and Reform Commission, and Xu Weigang, Director, Department of Economic Affairs, Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in HKSAR, led a delegation to the Chamber on 12 July, where they were welcomed by Emil Yu, General Committee member, and Victor Lam, Chairman of Industry & Technology Committee. The two sides exchanged views on the operation of Hong Kong enterprises, the import and export trade situation, and aspects of Guangdong-Hong Kong cooperation.
China Committee members met with a delegation led by Zhen Ruiquan, President, Jiangmen Association of Enterprises with Foreign Investment, on 19 July. The two parties discussed the complementary resources and cooperation of chambers between the cities, so as to jointly promote the development of the Greater Bay Area (GBA).