TUESDY, JUNE 5, 1990
'INDEED, TO PERMIT THE ECONOMIES TO RESTRUCTURE SUCCESSFULLY, GOVERNMENTS NEED
ΤΟ
ESTABLISH THE RIGHT ENVIRONMENT BY REDUCING BARRIERS TO TRADE, ALLOWING THE FREE FLOW OF CAPITAL, KEEPING TAXATION LOW, REDUCING RED TAPE TO MINIMUM AND CONCENTRATING ON PROVIDING THE NECESSARY INFRASTRUCTURE," HE SAID.
A
"IF THIS IS DONE WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF A HEALTHY MULTILATERAL TRADING FRAMEWORK THE HONG KONG EXPERIENCE SUGGESTS THAT THE DEVELOPING ECONOMIES OF THE ASIA AND PACIFIC REGION WILL RESTRUCTURE THEMSELVES AND WILL BE GIVEN A BETTER CHANCE TO FLOURISH
FLOURISH THAN UNDER ANY OTHER REGIME SO FAR DESIGNED BY MAN."
DR TSE SAID HONG KONG HAD HAD ΤΟ UNDERGO GREAT STRUCTURAL CHANGES OVER THE LAST 45 YEARS FROM ENTREPOT, то MANUFACTURING, TO SERVICE AND TRADING CENTRE.
"MANY BUSINESSES FAILED IN THE PROCESS; MANY PEOPLE HAD то FIND NEW JOBS.
"BUT THE BUSINESSES WHICH SURVIVED HAVE LEARNT HOW TO ADAPT QUICKLY, HOW TO TURN A THREAT INTO AN OPPORTUNITY, HOW TO REMAIN COMPETITIVE IN A RAPIDLY CHANGING ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT, HE SAID.
1960'S
THE THRUSTING, AGGRESSIVE, COMPETITIVE HONG KONG OF THE COULD SUCCEED BECAUSE THE POST-SECOND WORLD WAR MULTILATERAL TRADING TARIFFS AND TRADE SYSTEM ESTABLISHED UNDER THE GENERAL AGREEMENT ON (GATT) PROVIDED THE RIGHT ENVIRONMENT.
TARIFF BARRIERS WERE DRAMATICALLY REDUCED IN SUCCESSIVE GATT ROUNDS OF NEGOTIATIONS AND A
FOR FRAMEWORK
DISPUTE
WAS SETTLEMENT ESTABLISHED WHICH HELPED
THE TRADE WARS THAT COULD BE 30 DAMAGING TO THE SMALL PLAYERS LIKE HONG KONG, HE SAID.
AVOID
"WE CAME TO VALUE THESE MULTILATERAL DISCIPLINES AND TO SEE THAT ONLY BY WORKING CLOSELY WITH ONE'S TRADING PARTNERS AND BY WORKING TO A COMMONLY AGREED SET OF INTERNATIONAL TRADING RULES HONG KONG'S LONG-TERM ECONOMIC GROWTH BE ASSURED.
||
COULD
DR TSE SAID HONG KONG HAD PLAYED AN ACTIVE ROLE IN THE GATT A DE FACTO BASIS FOR MANY YEARS.
ON
IN APRIL, 1986, HONG KONG FINALLY BECAME A SEPARATE THE GATT AND HAS SINCE BEEN ACTIVELY INVOLVED IN THE ROUND OF MULTILATERAL TRADE NEGOTIATIONS.
MEMBER OF
CURRENT URUGUAY
"WE HAVE LEARNT THAT PLACING LONG-TERM MULTILATERAL ABOVE SHORT-TERM SECTORAL INTERESTS IS NOT ALWAYS EASY.
"BUT WE REMAIN ABSOLUTELY CONVINCED THAT IT THAT THE IMPORTANT FOR OUR MUTUAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SYSTEM SHOULD PROSPER.
GOALS
13 VITALLY MULTILATERAL
BE OPENED "THE MARKETS OF THE WORLD MUST
то EVER-WIDER PRODUCTS OF THIS INCREASINGLY PRODUCTIVE REGION, HE SAID.
**
THE
TO THE 46TH ESCAP INCLUDE THE
DELEGATION DR TSE IS LEADING A HONG KONG PLENARY SESSION WHICH WILL END ON JUNE 13. OTHER MEMBERS DIRECTOR-GENERAL OF TRADE, MR T.H. CHAU, AS THE DEPUTY REPRESENTATIVE; AND AN THE DEPUTY COMMISSIONER FOR CENSUS AND STATISTICS, MR FRED HO,
BOTH NIP, ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR TRADE AND INDUSTRY, MR PATRICK ALTERNATES,
AS
/4