130 Commerce and Industry
It continued to place particular emphasis on
place particular emphasis on the Mainland and sought opportunities, particularly for SMEs, in priority overseas emerging markets. On the Mainland, the focus was on promoting Hong Kong as a professional and design service centre, a partner for Mainland businesses seeking global opportunities and a prime supplier of fashionable, yet affordable, lifestyle products.
The TDC sought to enhance and promote the competitive advantages of Hong Kong's SMEs through a wide range of business-matching and information support services, and more than 100 business training programmes, workshops and seminars in 2005. In November, the TDC signed a memorandum with the Guangzhou Bureau of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation on the Guangzhou - Hong Kong CEPA Market Entry Facilitation Mechanism to assist Hong Kong companies to set up businesses in Guangzhou. Its official website, tdctrade.com provided a global online platform for Hong Kong SMEs to facilitate business opportunities. The website offered online sourcing services, insightful market information, multi-media broadcast content and business tools.
The TDC maintains a global databank of about 620 000 business contacts, from which users worldwide can source and find business partners. It also publishes 14 trade magazines, numerous supplements, a wide range of research reports and practical guidebooks to help Hong Kong companies exporting to international markets.
During the year, the TDC sought to expand its global network and strengthen its advocacy of Hong Kong through outreach programmes, speaking engagements, receiving incoming missions, global advertising campaigns and its online business newspaper Hong Kong Trader (and CEO Express for Mainland), read by over 350 000 senior corporate executives and decision-makers. The TDC services six high-level bilateral business committees to help foster stronger economic ties between Hong Kong, US, the European Union, Japan, the United Kingdom, France and Korea. To facilitate partnerships between Hong Kong and overseas SMEs, the TDC also maintains close liaison with nearly 30 Hong Kong business associations around the world and their global federation, the Federation of Hong Kong Business Associations Worldwide, which connects over 10 000 SMEs that have close links with Hong Kong.
Hong Kong Export Credit Insurance Corporation
The Hong Kong Export Credit Insurance Corporation (ECIC) was created by statute in 1966 to provide export credit insurance facilities for Hong Kong exporters of goods and services against non-payment risks arising from commercial and political events. The ECIC is wholly owned by the Government, which also guarantees its maximum contingent liability, currently standing at $12.5 billion.
The ECIC encourages and supports export trade through the provision of professional and customer-oriented services. It provides a wide range of insurance facilities to Hong Kong exporters of goods and services for payments on credit terms. The Comprehensive Cover Policy, which covers exports, re-exports and external trade business for credit terms up to 180 days, is the most commonly used insurance policy.