Press Release - November 8, 2002

The first ever Hong Kong-Canada Trade Mission organized by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (Canada) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government got off to a rousing start today (Nov 8) with principal government officials of the two places jointly officiating at its opening conference in Hong Kong.

The Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology, Mr Henry Tang, represented the host government in welcoming the 53 delegates from 40 Canadian companies and organizations to Hong Kong to explore business co-operations with their potential Hong Kong partners for ventures into the huge China market.

Joining Mr Tang at the conference were the Canadian Secretary of State (Asia Pacific), Mr David Kilgour, and the Alberta Minister of Economic Development, Mr Mark Norris.

Addressing the delegates at the opening of the one-day conference at the Hong Kong Exhibition and Convention Centre, Mr Tang said he was very much encouraged by the excellent turnout. �Your presence tells me that you all recognize the business potential that Hong Kong possesses as a fast track to Mainland China at a time when the economy of the latter is poised to grow even faster following China�s accession to the World Trade Organisation,� he said.

�In the next few days, you will see for yourselves the vibrancy of Hong Kong. You will meet and explore with your prospective Hong Kong partners on how they and Hong Kong can best assist you to tape the opportunities offered by the growing Mainland market.

�You will come to appreciate the wealth of knowledge and expertise accumulated by Hong Kong entrepreneurs through decades of doing business with Mainland China. You will agree that Hong Kong is exceptionally well placed to bring Mainland and Canadian businesses together.�

Also speaking at the conference opening, Secretary Kilgour echoed Mr Tang�s viewpoint. He said: �Hong Kong, the high-tech node for traders and bankers, is also the services center for Southern China and has been ranked by the Fraser Institute as the freest economy in the world.

�At the mouth of the Pearl River, its location makes it the entrepot of choice for businesses with their eyes on Southern China. The provinces of Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian and Hainan are home to 165 million people and trade runs to the tune of CAD $200 billion.�

With an unrivalled location and a sophisticated business environment, Hong Kong is uniquely suited to put Canadian businesses on the fast track to China, he added.

Extending warm greeting on behalf the Alberta provincial government of Canada, Minister Norris said Hong Kong and Alberta had strong ties and for more than 20 years , the Alberta Office in Hong Kong had connected business people and investors from Hong Kong and Alberta. These helped contribute to the fact that Alberta businesses exported CAD$100 million worth of goods and services to Hong Kong last year.

He hoped that though this trade mission, the ties between Alberta and Hong Kong could be further strengthened and that new trade and investment opportunities could be explored.

Today�s conference is the start of a comprehensive trade mission programme, which also includes briefings and workshops as well as networking opportunities with prospective business partners in Hong Kong and a side trip to southern China to see how Hong Kong-owned companies are run there. It promises to be a valuable forum for participating Canadian companies to have an in-depth exploration of the considerable business opportunities that the huge China market has presented to them.

Delegates of the Hong Kong-Canada trade mission come from the following sectors: information and communications technology (11 organisations/ 16 delegates); environment (9 organisations/ 14 delegates); biotech (4 organisations/ 4 delegates); professional services (9 organisations/ 10 delegates) and industrial and others (7 organisations/ 9 delegates).

Among the 40 companies, 16 come from British Columbia, 13 from Ontario, seven from Alberta, with the rest from other areas including three from Hong Kong.

The �Hong Kong � Your Fast Track to China� trade mission has received the full support of the Canadian government. It is also supported by the Report On Business Television and Fairchild TV in Canada as its media sponsors and Cathay Pacific Airways as the official carrier.



For more information, please contact:
John Tam, Chief Information Officer of Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office at: (416) 924-5544 or email: [email protected] or Elison Chu, Senior Information Officer, [email protected].