XN000022-1990-10-10 — Page 37

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 10, 1990

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LINKS WITH INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS COMMUNITY IS IMPORTANT

*

THE GOVERNOR, SIR DAVID WILSON, SAID THE LINKS WITH INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS COMMUNITY IN HONG KONG IS IMPORTANT, NOT ONLY BECAUSE OF THE INVESTMENT THEY BRING INTO THE TERRITORY, BUT BECAUSE HONG KONG WILL CONTINUE TO DEPEND IN THE 1990S ON ITS ABILITY ΤΟ RESPOND QUICKLY TO THE FLUCTUATING DEMANDS OF WORLDWIDE MARKETS.

"THIS DOES NOT MEAN THAT WE CAN AFFORD TO NEGLECT OUR TRADITIONAL TRADING PARTNERS, SUCH AS THE UNITED STATES. BUT IT DOES MEAN THAT WE MUST TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE NEW COMMERCIAL AND FINANCIAL RELATIONSHIPS EMERGING, NOT ONLY IN CHINA, BUT AROUND THE WORLD,"

SAID.

HE

SIR DAVID POINTED OUT THAT ECONOMICALLY, HONG KONG HAD A GLOBAL, AS WELL AS A REGIONAL, ROLE TO PLAY.

HE SAID THAT THE INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS COMMITTEE SET UP LAST YEAR UNDER THE CHAIRMANSHIP OF THE CHIEF SECRETARY WAS MORE THAN JUST A SYMBOL OF THE KEY ROLE WHICH OVERSEAS INVESTORS AND COMPANIES WOULD CONTINUE TO PLAY IN HONG KONG.

ISSUES

OF

"IT BRINGS TOGETHER REPRESENTATIVES OF ALL THE FOREIGN CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE IN A HIGH-LEVEL FORUM WHERE MAJOR PRACTICAL CONCERN TO THE OVERSEAS COMMUNITY CAN BE DISCUSSED.

"THIS COMMUNITY IS GROWING FAST. THE TOTAL NUMBER OF OVERSEAS COMPANIES BASED IN HONG KONG HAS INCREASED FOR THE LAST FIVE YEARS AT RATE OF NEARLY 60 PER YEAR. THIS IS A NET FIGURE: NEW ARRIVALS FAR

THAN COMPENSATE MORE

FOR THE FEW, OVER-PUBLICISED CASES COMPANIES DECIDING TO LEAVE,' HE SAID.

THE

"I

OF

WOULD

SIR DAVID SAID IN 1992, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC COMMUNITY ESTABLISH THE SINGLE EUROPEAN MARKET AND REMOVE ALL INTERNAL BARRIERS.

"THIS MARKET HAS A TOTAL OF 320 MILLION CONSUMERS, AND ALREADY ACCOUNTS FOR NEARLY 40 PER CENT OF WORLD

THE TRADE.

TRANSFORMED NEW, POLITICAL CLIMATE IN EASTERN EUROPE WILL ALSO GIVE OUR EXPORTERS LONG-TERM BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES.

WAS

"AND, ABOVE ALL, WE MUST LOOK TO THE EXPANDING ECONOMIES OF THE IN ASIA-PACIFIC REGION AS MAJOR TRADING PARTNERS - AS WELL AS RIVALS. THE FIRST SIX MONTHS OF THIS YEAR, 60 PER CENT OF OUR TOTAL TRADE WITH COUNTRIES IN THIS REGION, AND THE GROWTH RATE OF OUR DOMESTIC EXPORTS TO ASIA-PACIFIC COUNTRIES OUTPACED THOSE TO ALL OTHER AREAS.

"SELLING OUR PRODUCTS IN ALL THESE FAST-DEVELOPING MARKETS WILL REQUIRE NEW SKILLS AND EVEN GREATER ADAPTABILITY. THE COMPETITION, PARTICULARLY IN THE PRESENT ECONOMIC CLIMATE, WILL BE FIERCE. THE POTENTIAL REWARDS ARE CORRESPONDINGLY GREAT," THE GOVERNOR SAID.

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