COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY
leading business executives and government officials, including Vice Premier Zeng Peiyan and former US President Bill Clinton, and attracted over 600 delegates. Invest Hong Kong supported other major events in 2003, such as the 21st Pacific Insurance Conference with 300 senior executives from the life and health insurance industry; CASBAA (The Cable & Satellite Broadcasting Convention 2003) with 91 speakers and some 1 100 delegates from around the world.
Invest Hong Kong's work in promoting Hong Kong's advantages was recognised at the Asia Pacific Investment Promotion Agency (IPA) Awards 2003 organised by Strategic Direct Investor magazine, a Euromoney Institutional Investor publication. Invest Hong Kong won awards for the Best Overall Managed IPA, Best North Asia IPA, Best IPA in Creating Partnerships and Best IPA in Attracting Financial Services Investment.
Hong Kong Economic and Trade Offices
The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Offices seek to promote economic and trade interests by enhancing understanding of the HKSAR among opinion-formers; closely monitoring developments that might affect the HKSAR's economic and trading interests, such as proposed legislation; and liaising closely with the business and commercial sectors, politicians, think tanks and the news media. They also organise events to promote Hong Kong's image. In addition, most of these offices seek to attract direct investment into Hong Kong. One of the means is to actively promote Hong Kong's enhanced business advantages and environment under the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement.
The offices are located in Brussels, Geneva, London, New York, San Francisco, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo, Toronto, Washington and Guangdong.
The Brussels Office represents Hong Kong's economic and trade interests in dealings with the European Union (EU). It also monitors and promotes bilateral relations with the EU and its member states except the United Kingdom.
The Geneva Office represents Hong Kong, China, as a member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), and represents Hong Kong as an observer on the Trade. Committee of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
The London Office promotes Hong Kong's economic and trade interests in the United Kingdom and non-EU countries including Switzerland, Norway and Russia as well as the Central and Eastern European countries that will acede to the EU in May 2004. Hong Kong's representative to the International Maritime Organisation is also based in the office.
The offices in Sydney, Tokyo and Toronto are responsible for bilateral economic and trade relations in their host countries. The Sydney Office is also responsible for promoting Hong Kong's economic and trade interests in New Zealand. The Singapore Office is responsible for Hong Kong's commercial relations with the member states of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN). It also serves as a direct point of contact with the Secretariats of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council (PECC), which are located in Singapore.
The Washington Office focuses on monitoring and liaising with the US Administration, Congress and think tanks on legislation and government policies that
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