TRADE AND INDUSTRY
The Geneva Office represents Hong Kong, China, as a Member of the WTO. It also represents Hong Kong as an observer on the OECD Trade Committee in Paris.
The Brussels Office represents Hong Kong's economic and trade interests to the European Commission and (through the commission) most of the Member States of the EU. It also monitors Hong Kong's economic and trade relations with a number of European Countries.
The London Office promotes Hong Kong's economic and trade interests in the UK, Switzerland, Norway, and the Central and Eastern European Countries. It also houses Hong Kong's representative to the International Maritime Organisation.
The offices in Toronto, Tokyo, Singapore and Sydney closely monitor economic and trade developments, proposed legislation and other matters in their host countries which may affect Hong Kong's trade and economic interests. Moreover, whereas the Singapore Office also looks after Hong Kong's commercial relationship with the member states of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and serves as a direct point of contact with the Secretariats of APEC and PECC located in Singapore, the Sydney Office is also responsible for promoting Hong Kong's economic and trade interests in New Zealand.
Offices in Washington, DC, New York and San Francisco look after Hong Kong's economic, commercial and public relations interests in the USA.
Participation in International Organisations
World Trade Organisation
The WTO oversees the implementation of the multilateral rules and disciplines agreed at the Uruguay Round of negotiations for trade in goods, services and trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights. It also serves as a forum for multilateral trade negotiations and for handling trade disputes amongst its members. The multilateral trading system under the WTO is the cornerstone of the HKSAR's external trade policy. The HKSAR supports a strong and credible multilateral trading system to sustain global trade liberalisation and economic growth.
The HKSAR is a founding member of the WTO. Its separate membership status reflects the autonomy in the conduct of its external commercial relations which is guaranteed under the Basic Law of the HKSAR.
It was an important year for the multilateral trading system the second WTO Ministerial Conference and the commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) were held in Geneva in May 1998. WTO members, some of whom were represented at the Head of State level, pronounced at the commemoration of the 50th Anniversary the achievements of the rule-based multilateral trading system in fostering progressive global trade liberalisation. At the second Ministerial Conference, WTO members agreed to establish a preparatory process for further negotiations, with a view to presenting a comprehensive range of options to the third Ministerial Conference to be held in the USA in November 1999. The HKSAR will continue to participate in the work of the WTO so as to secure an agreement at the third Ministerial Conference to launch a new round of broad-based, comprehensive and balanced multilateral trade negotiations before the turn of the century.
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