Blog

“Leveraging the Mainland while Engaging the World”

A gist of the blog:

Last week, I was invited to attend the 9th Shanghai-Hong Kong Metropolitan Development Seminar in Shanghai. During the process of reform and opening-up of China in the past 40 years, it was clear that Hong Kong’s pivotal role has not diminished amid the country’s further opening up and enhanced connection with the world. On the contrary, Hong Kong has achieved significant development through continuous transformation and leveraging of our advantages in meeting the country’s needs. As its development enters a new era, China will continue to forge deeper reform, give equal emphasis to "bringing in" and "going global", with a view to boosting two-way investment and trade flows between China and other countries, thus making new ground for opening up on all fronts. Hong Kong’s financial sector can further develop and integrate into the overall development of the country and scale new heights.

Hong Kong is China’s international financial centre, the world’s largest offshore Renminbi business hub and Asia’s largest asset management centre. Under “one country, two systems”, our financial market boasts a number of unique strengths, such as a free and open market, a robust regulatory system with efficient financial infrastructures, a common law system and the fine tradition of the rule of law, a simple and low tax regime, a wide range of financial products, top-class trilingual professionals (who speak Cantonese, Putonghua and English) with a good command of two languages (English and Chinese), and a lifestyle blending Eastern and Western cultures.

Going forward, as China deepens its opening up and its connection with the international community, Hong Kong’s role as the gateway and hub connecting China and the world will become even more prominent and our advantages under the “one country two systems” will be even more notable. These advantages cannot be developed or replicated by other places in a short period of time. As long as we uphold the strategy of “Leveraging the Mainland while Engaging the World” and can identify the right position for ourselves, Hong Kong can better serve our country’s needs in the new phase of China’s development, and continue to flourish.

June 10, 2018