Blog

My Visit to Australia

Over the past nine years, the HKSAR Government has invested more than $210 billion to drive innovation and technology (I&T) development by launching an array of initiatives ranging from infrastructure development; supporting universities on research and development and outcome transformation; nurturing start-ups and supporting their accelerated development; funding patent applications and market promotion, as well as steering related investment. All these policy and financial support measures have pushed forward more vibrant development of the entire ecosystem. Hong Kong is now actively emerging as an international I&T centre.

Last week, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) published its annual Global Innovation Index that ranks the world's top 100 science and technology (S&T) clusters. The Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou S&T cluster continued to rank second globally for the fifth consecutive year, just behind the Tokyo-Yokohama S&T cluster. The Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou cluster saw an increase in the density of patent-filing as well as articles published in scientific research journals during the assessment period.

This ranking reflects that both Hong Kong, and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) where Hong Kong is located, have a leading edge in innovative research. This is conducive to our collaboration in the transformation of R&D outcomes into products and services in a more effective and efficient manner. We believe that the sustained growth in the number of I&T enterprises establishing their foothold or expanding their operations in Hong Kong, together with the GBA's advantages in advanced manufacturing and innovative capabilities, will add fresh impetus to Hong Kong's economy.

This is also a testimony to Hong Kong's advantages in the GBA. With the uniqueness and flexibility endowed by the "one country, two systems" principle, Hong Kong has become one of the premier locations for Mainland enterprises to tap into the international market, and for bringing together enterprises, capital and top talents from around the world. We are making every effort to open up new markets and expand our partnership network. Following my visit to Nanjing last week to strengthen exchanges and co-operation between Jiangsu and Hong Kong, I will visit Melbourne and Sydney, Australia next week, hoping to strengthen our connection and co-operation with Australia in the areas of economy, trade, finance and I&T, and to explore more business opportunities together. This is my first visit to Australia in six years, and I seek to achieve three objectives during the trip.

The first objective is to attract enterprises and investments on a thematic basis, thus providing our emerging industries with more exchange and co-operation opportunities. One focus of my visit is to meet with the local I&T enterprises in such fields as biomedical technologies, new energy and fintech. We will brief them on the strategic advantages of Hong Kong's development. Through face-to-face meetings and exchanges, we hope to further deepen their understanding of and interest in Hong Kong, which will help them make decisions on establishing their foothold or expanding their operations in the city.

As a "dual gateway" connecting the Mainland and the rest of the world, Hong Kong provides I&T enterprises with an ideal platform for market expansion in the Mainland as well as the whole region. Hong Kong has five of the world's top 100 universities and strong capabilities in basic scientific research. In addition, it has access to both global and Mainland data; provides effective patent and legal protection for research outcomes; and is home to a vibrant, full-chain fund-raising market. These are our core advantages to attract I&T enterprises to settle in Hong Kong.

The second objective is to promote more exchanges and co-operation on green technology. In recent years, the world is working to address climate change, and green transformation has thus become an important issue. Through more cross-territory exchanges, we can discuss the challenges we face in common, which will facilitate our joint efforts in exploring the solutions in response.

I have proposed in my previous Budgets to develop Hong Kong into an international green tech and green finance centre. Steady progress has been made. As Hong Kong has pooled together quite a number of globally-competitive green technology enterprises, we are well-positioned to promote more R&D collaboration or provide solutions applicable to overseas contexts. Given the large number of Australian enterprises engaged in green technology and green energy, I believe that establishing contacts with them will help deepen mutual understanding and facilitate further co-operation.

The third objective is to fortify and extend our ties with traditional overseas markets. Apart from being a popular destination for further studies and travelling among many Hong Kong people, Australia is also one of the important markets for Hong Kong in terms of trade and business. Last year, the value of Australian goods imported to Hong Kong amounted to HK$14.8 billion, comprising mainly fruits and vegetables, seafood and beverages. Take wine as an example. The total value of wine imported from Australia last year amounted to over HK$1.4 billion, making it Hong Kong's second largest wine importer in terms of import value, and the largest in terms of volume. Hong Kong has not only served as a connector between the Australian wine industry and a vast market, but also strengthened our own position as one of the world's leading wine trading and auction centres.

Hong Kong's extensive air transportation network, comprehensive warehousing facilities, and highly efficient customs clearance procedures have made the city the most cost-effective distribution and transshipment hub for high-value products, be they wine, fruits and vegetables, or seafood. Such advantages, as well as many other potential opportunities that are yet to be fully known to the Australian business community, are the things that I want to promote during my visit.

During my stay in Melbourne and Sydney, I will participate in a number of business exchange activities organised by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, Sydney and the local business community. I will also attend the Asia Summit organised by the Australian Financial Review in partnership with Asia Society Australia, where I will deliver a keynote speech introducing Hong Kong's latest developments and opportunities to representatives of the local business and financial sectors, and answer their questions during the Q&A session.

We believe that by visiting different markets, personally engaging with the local business and financial leaders, and exchanging views with representatives of I&T enterprises, we can provide a fuller picture of Hong Kong's new development advantages and potential under the "one country, two systems" framework, as well as the enormous opportunities arising from the development of the GBA. Such visits will also help promote cross-territory exchanges and co-operation.

September 1, 2024