Press Release - November 15, 2004

The Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, Mr John Tsang, today (Monday) told Canadian business people that a South China �common market� is taking shaping, with Hong Kong playing a major role.

On the last day of his official visit to Toronto, Mr Tsang spoke to over 150 business leaders at a luncheon hosted by the Toronto Board of Trade, in association with the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (Canada), InvestHK, Hong Kong Trade Development Council, and the Hong Kong-Canada Business Association.

In a keynote speech entitled �Hong Kong � New Era, New Opportunities�, Secretary Tsang said the new �Pan-Pearl River Delta Regional Co-operation and Development Forum� initiative would bring together nine provinces of southern China, including Guangdong, along with Hong Kong and Macau.

�To give you some idea of the size and scope of the concept, the Pan-PRD with a population of some 450 million, is roughly the size of NAFTA, or the expanded European Union, or ASEAN,� he said. �The region�s combined GDP in 2003 was US$630 billion, accounting for 40 per cent of China�s total output.� He described it as an �exciting development� and a �visionary concept that aims to develop a South China �common market�.�

�We believe Pan-PRD will have far-reaching consequences for China�s future in breaking down the barriers between local economies and forging a multi-provincial, regional free-trade area, which is expected to grow into one of the world�s largest and most efficient regional economies,� he said.

Mr Tsang also gave an update to the Canadian business leaders on the economic outlook of Hong Kong and how the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA), a free trade pact between Hong Kong and the Mainland China, could help Canadian businesses looking for opportunities to expand into China.

After the luncheon, Mr Tsang attended a policy seminar organized by the CD Howe Institute, Canada�s most respected independent research institution, on �Canada and China � and Hong Kong�.

The visit of Mr Tsang was concluded by a reception organized by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office for him to meet Chinese business and community leaders in Toronto. Later this evening, Mr Tsang will leave Toronto for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Meeting in Santiago, Chile.

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