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Fostering more inclusive and resilient global development for all
As we start the year 2023, Hong Kong welcomed the first large-scale financial forum this year - the 16th Asian Financial Forum (AFF). The two-day forum was successfully held last week. It returned to physical format for the first time in three years and was held in a hybrid mode that was accessible both physically and virtually. This year’s forum assembled political and business leaders from more than 70 countries or regions to share their insights on issues related to global finance and economy and explore cooperation opportunities.
The AFF has always been an annual signature event in the financial and business sectors. This year’s forum attracted a total of more than 7 000 participants amid the accelerated pace of returning to normality in Hong Kong. Both numbers of the participants and exhibitors exceeded the pre-pandemic levels. Among them, more than 100 global business leaders, policymakers, financial and wealth management professionals, entrepreneurs, technology innovators and economists spoke at the forum, sharing their observations and insights on the latest economic and financial developments. So to speak, Hong Kong has always been a prime location for being closely connected to the world, examining trends and changes, gathering cutting-edge viewpoints and converging massive business opportunities. As an international financial centre, Hong Kong has outstanding strengths and core competitive advantages.
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| Last week, I spoke at the Asian Financial Forum keynote luncheon and highlighted the importance of sustainable development. |
I met with a number of representatives of international organisations who visited Hong Kong from overseas to participate in the forum both within and outside the venue. They were all very excited about Hong Kong’s resumption of normal travel and exchanges with the Mainland as well as other parts of the world, and some of them already made arrangements to visit Hong Kong again within this year. They unanimously affirmed Hong Kong’s role as the unique bridge between the Mainland and the world as well as our convenient hub function as a base to cover the Asian market. Their visit to Hong Kong to participate in the forum strengthened their confidence in Hong Kong, and also allowed them to actively consider and plan to increase investment and expand the scale of operations in Hong Kong.
Under the theme of “Accelerating Transformation: Impact ∙ Inclusion ∙ Innovation” in the AFF this year, participants focused on thinking about how to jointly build resilient economic development through innovation and inclusion. In my speech at the forum, I also elaborated the importance of “sustainable development”. In addition to jointly addressing the challenges of climate change, all parts of the world should cooperate to promote more tolerant, inclusive and resilient global development. By putting forward the “Global Development Initiative”, our country has been promoting a mutually beneficial and win-win cooperation model indeed, which has received broad and substantial support from the international community. The HKSAR government has been adopting a multi-pronged approach to promote sustainable development as well.
Another issue of concern at the forum was the increasing downside risks of the global economy. The situation in Europe, troubled by the energy crisis, was even more alarming. Many participants were relatively optimistic about the Asian economy, and even adjusted their investment strategies and deployment for this year accordingly.
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| The 16th Asian Financial Forum was successfully held last week. The Forum this year brought together political and business leaders and experts from over 70 countries and regions, including Mr Ban Ki-moon, former Secretary-General of the United Nations (middle). |
Looking ahead to 2023, the global economic environment remains complex and volatile. According to the World Bank’s “Global Economic Prospects” report released last week, the global economy is forecast to grow by just 1.7% this year amid heightened geopolitical tensions, elevated inflation, rising interest rates and reduced investment; among which growth in advanced economies is forecast to slow even more significantly to just 0.5%. The slowdown in major economies, pressures on government revenues and rising debt, together with weak investment sentiment, will severely limit the ability of governments around the world in allocating public spending on providing social services and responding to climate change, etc. Amid geopolitical tensions, it will indeed be a challenge to remain committed to promoting better cooperation among countries, so that the global economy can develop in a sustainable and even more resilient and inclusive manner.
This year’s World Economic Forum will be held in Davos, Switzerland from the 16th to 20th this month, and the theme is “Cooperation in a Fragmented World”. I left for Switzerland last night to attend the forum. During the forum, I will exchange views with political, business and financial leaders from different regions, and actively promote the latest developments in Hong Kong’s recovery and the tremendous opportunities in this new phase of development.
No matter what challenges we face, we must do our best to develop our economy, expand our development capacity, and enhance our development momentum, so as to open up wider markets for our industries and create more quality employment opportunities for our citizens. This will allow us to have more room in resolving issues and conflicts regarding people’s livelihood. Internally, we need to bring forces in the local community and in the market together, leverage the advantages from the Mainland’s resources and economies of scale, in order to inject energy to Hong Kong’s economic development. Internationally, we need to promote Hong Kong’s advantages and tell the good stories of Hong Kong to paint a clear picture of Hong Kong’s new opportunities and development, and spare no effort in attracting investments and talents. It could be said that attracting investments and talents are equally important, and they complement one another. At this stage of returning to normalcy, the Government’s political team is actively involved in the work on telling the good stories of Hong Kong. This includes the resumption of visits to different countries and markets and the active promotion of Hong Kong’s latest developments and tremendous opportunities to governments, businesses, enterprises and community representatives through various channels and occasions, with a view to fostering better exchanges and cooperation, working together to explore new markets and open up new opportunities, and jointly promoting mutually beneficial development, so that different segments and sectors of the community can benefit and the fruits of development can be better shared.
January 15, 2023
