18
WEDNESDAY, JULY 7, 1993
ESTABLISHED TO MAKE IT ONE.
TO NEED IF THIS
OF THE
AT THIS POINT MR PRESIDENT I WOULD RECALL THE WORDING MOTION. AS MR MCGREGOR AND MR VINCENT CHENG POINTED OUT, IT APPEARS TO CARRY THE IMPLICATION THAT HONG KONG IS NOT YET A MAJOR SERVICE CENTRE IN ASIA AND THAT RELEVANT POLICIES
BE FORMULATED AND ACCURATELY COMMITTEES
REFLECTS THE INTENDED MEANING OF THE MOTION, AND I FIND IT VERY HARD TO BELIEVE INDEED. FOR THAT IT CAN, IT WOULD BE AN EXTRAORDINARY PROPOSITION SOME YEARS NOW, HONG KONG HAS BEEN WELL RECOGNISED INTERNATIONALLY BE A MAJOR SERVICE CENTRE ALREADY, NOT JUST IN ASIA BUT IN THE AS A WHOLE. THIS IS PARTICULARLY TRUE IN THE AREAS OF OTHER FINANCIAL SERVICES, SHIPPING, AIRLINES, TELECOMMUNICATIONS
A MAJOR SERVICE HONG KONG HAS BECOME TOURISM, ΤΟ NAME BUT A FEW. CENTRE ON THE BASIS OF THE POLICIES, LONG SINCE FORMULATED AND ALREADY WELL-ESTABLISHED, TO WHICH I HAVE JUST REFERRED. THESE POLICIES ARE WELL TESTED FIRMLY ENTRENCHED IN OUR ECONOMIC SYSTEM AND HAVE BEEN
_
BANKING
ΤΟ
WORLD
AND
AND
OVER THE YEARS. THEY HAVE CONTRIBUTED SUBSTANTIALLY TO OUR ECONOMIC SUCCESS. IT WOULD BE ILL-ADVISED, TO SAY THE LEAST, EVEN TO CONSIDER GOING FOR ANYTHING MATERIALLY DIFFERENT PARTICULARLY AT A TIME WHEN THE THE WORLD IS LITTERED WITH THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL DEBRIS LEFT BY ABJECT FAILURE OF THE INTRUSIVE, INTERVENTIONARY POLICIES OF THOSE WHO
THEIR ECONOMIES CONTROL, ΤΟ TRIED
INSTEAD DIRECT AND COMMAND ALLOWING THEIR MARKETS TO FUNCTION FREELY.
OF
LIVING IT IS, NEVERTHELESS, TRUE THAT WE IN HONG KONG ARE NOT
BUSINESSES ARE BECOMING IN
SITUATIONS DO CHANGE. A STATIC WORLD. MORE COMPLEX AND INTERTWINED. THERE HAS TO BE A PROCESS OF CONTINUOUS ADAPTATION FOR THE HONG KONG ECONOMY TO REMAIN IN THE BEST POSITION TO
IT AND
FOLLOWS TO MINIMISE HAZARDS. REAP
THAT BENEFITS
SPECIFIC ASPECTS IN DIFFERENT SERVICE POLICY AREAS MAY HAVE TO BE ADJUSTED WHEN JUST THE NEED ARISES, ALTHOUGH OUR OVERALL POLICY BASIS, WHICH I HAVE
IT EQUALLY FOLLOWS GONE INTO AT SOME LENGTH, SHOULD REMAIN INTACT.
RATHER, WE THAT WE DO NOT SEE THE NEED FOR A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW. SHOULD CONTINUE TO DEVELOP OUR CONSULTATIVE, REGULATORY AND ADJUSTMENT MECHANISMS ON A SECTOR-SPECIFIC BASIS, RECOGNISING THAT THE BREADTH AND
NECESSITATES DIVERSITY OF THE SERVICE SECTORS
HAVE LITTLE IN DIFFERENT
IN DIFFERENT AREAS THAT OFTEN APPROACHES COMMON WITH EACH OTHER.
OPERATING
ENORMOUS SOMEWHAT
MY OWN
MR PRESIDENT, LET ME OFFER A FEW EXAMPLES MAINLY FROM POLICY AREA OF FINANCIAL SERVICES TO ILLUSTRATE HOW POLICY FORMULATION
IN COMMITTEES WITH EXISTING
THE IS ALREADY
ENABLE
то SERVICE
ADAPTATION SECTORS TO
EFFECTIVE DEVELOPMENTS. THROUGH THESE MECHANISMS WE PRESERVE THE BASIC OF OUR OVERALL ECONOMIC STANCE WHILST BEING ALERT TO ANY NEED FOR CHANGE OR POSSIBILITY OF IMPROVEMENT.
INDIVIDUAL SECTORAL VIRTUES DEMONSTRATED
INVOLVING
THE
COMPANIES
ON BANKING,
MECHANISM THROUGH A CONSULTATIVE GOVERNMENT'S BANKING ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND DEPOSIT-TAKING ADVISORY COMMITTEE AS WELL AS CLOSE LIAISON WITH THE RELEVANT INDUSTRY ORGANISATIONS, NAMELY THE HONG KONG ASSOCIATION OF BANKS AND THE DTC SUPERVISION ASSOCIATION, A NEW AND LESS MECHANISTIC SYSTEM OF BANKING HAS BEEN DEVELOPED FOLLOWING THE INTRODUCTION IN 1986 OF A NEW BANKING AND ORDINANCE. THIS PLACES GREATER EMPHASIS ON SUPERVISORY JUDGMENT DISCRETION,. THE MAIN OBJECTIVE IS TO ENSURE STABILITY IN THE BANKING CONDUCTED SYSTEM AND THAT THE BUSINESS OF AUTHORISED INSTITUTIONS IS
ON ENSURING THAT IN A
EMPHASIS IS ALSO PLACED PRUDENTIAL MANNER.
REVIEWED AND SUPERVISORY STANDARDS AND REQUIREMENTS ARE CONSTANTLY
AND RELEVANT UPDATED TO KEEP ABREAST OF DEVELOPMENTS IN THE MARKET INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS. A FEW EXAMPLES OF SUCH EFFORTS INCLUDE:
/- COMPLIANCE WITH