STI to attend WTO First Ministerial Conference
Secretary for Trade and Industry, Miss Denise Yue, will lead a Hong Kong delegation to Singapore tomorrow (Saturday) to attend the first Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), to be held from 9 to 13 this month.
The Ministerial Conference will review the performance of the WTO since its establishment in 1995. It will also consider the future direction and work programme of the WTO.
"Being a trading economy, Hong Kong attaches a great deal of importance to the WTO," Miss Yue said.
"A WTO which is effective in promoting a free, open and stable international trading system and in liberalising trade and investment is vital to Hong Kong."
At Singapore, ministers from 127 WTO member governments will review the progress made by members on implementing their obligations committed in the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations.
Ministers will also assess the progress of ongoing work, particularly the negotiations on basic telecommunications and financial services which are due to be concluded next year. In addition, they will consider the future work programme of the WTO.
Efforts will also be focused on concluding an information technology agreement. This agreement aims to eliminate substantially tariffs on a wide range of computer and telecommunications-related products by the year 2000. Hong Kong strongly supports this initiative and participates actively in the negotiations.
Miss Yue said: "We hope that the meeting would deliver concrete results that would lend further credibility to the WTO and sustain the momentum of progressive trade liberalisation."
"Hong Kong would play an active role in the Ministerial Conference to help achieve a successful outcome," she added.
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