XN000022-1982-10-06 — Page 9

MODELEDAY, COTOPE..

THE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT, HE SAID, AGREED IN PRINCIPLE TO HONG KONG TAKING POWER FROM CHINA PROVIDED THAT THE COST WAS NO GREATER THAN IT WOULD BE IF WE PROVIDED THE NECESSARY FOSSIL FUEL BASED GENERATING PLANT IN HONG KONG.

SIR EDWARD ALSO SPOKE ABOUT OUR TRADE AND OTHER LINKS WITH CHINA.

IN TERMS OF TRADE, CHINA HAD MOVED UP FROM BEING THE SECOND LARGEST SOURCE OF HONG KONG'S IMPORTS TO BEING THE LARGEST OVERTAK ING JAPAN BY A SMALL MARGIN, AND HAD BECOME THE FOURTH LARGEST MARKET FOR OUR DOMESTIC EXPORTS.

+CHINA HAS ALWAYS BEEN THE LARGEST SOURCE OF RE-EXPORTS THROUGH HONG KONG, NOW IT IS THE LARGEST MARKET FOR SUCH RE-EXPORTS,+ HE SAID.

OUTSIDE THE TRADE FIELD, SIR EDWARD SAID, HONG KONG ECONOMIC RELATIONSHIP WITH CHINA EXTENDS OVER A WIDE RANGE OF ACTIVITIES.

+YOU ARE ALL AWARE OF THE AGREEMENTS WE HAVE REACHED WITH THE GUANGDONG AUTHORITIES FOR AN INCREASED LONG-TERM SUPPLY OF WATER TO HONG KONG WHICH IS PERHAPS THE BEST KNOWN EXAMPLE OF COOPERATION BETWEEN HONG KONG AND GUANGDONG.

+THESE AGREEMENTS HAVE REQUIRED MAJOR WORKS ON BOTH SIDES OF THE BORDER, WITH CHINA-BASED CONSTRUCTION COMPANIES WINNING SIGNIFICANT PUBLIC WORKS CONTRACTS IN HONG KONG.+

SIR EDWARD SAID HE HAD SEEN AT FIRST HAND SOME OF THE INVESTMENTS IN THE SPECIAL ECONOMIC ZONE IN SHENZHEN AND ALSO IN GUANGZHOU ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE COIN WAS THE STEADILY GROWING INVESTMENT BY CHINA-BASED COMPANIES IN HONG KONG.

I

+IN PARTICULAR, I WELCOME THE PARTICIPATION OF THE CHINA RESOURCES COMPANY IN THE TIN SHUI WAI DEVELOPMENT AND THE DECISION OF THE BANK OF CHINA TO MAKE A MAJOR INVESTMENT IN BUILDING A NEW HEAD OFFICE IN CENTRAL.

+THIS STRENGTHENING OF OUR ECONOMIC TIES WITH CHINA HAS BEEN MATCHED BY A RAPID EXPANSION IN THE NETWORK OF AIR AND SEA LINKS WITH CHINESE CITIES.

+THE AGREEMENT SIGNED WITH THE SHENZHEN AUTHORITIES IN APRIL SHOULD LEAD TO A PARALLEL IMPROVEMENT IN COMMUNICATIONS ACROSS THE LAND BORDER, SIR EDWARD SAID.

-

18