TNAG-2047-FCO40-2917-Visits-by-staff-of-the-Department-of-Trade-and-Industry-to-H-1990 — Page 85

either as members of trade missions and DTI-supported groups at

exhibitions or under their own steam. British companies like

yourselves are also showing increasing interest in establishing

themselves in the territory. The British Trade Commission's

Directory of British Companies is certainly a lot thicker now than

when first produced a few years ago.

The British profile has also been much enhanced by the efforts of

the British Chamber of Commerce since its launch by the Governor in

1987. The Chamber, now under the stewardship of Dick Povey, has

provided positive and much-needed support for the established

British community and for new-comers to the market and, due to

their hard work the Chamber has seen its membership increase

substantially in recent months. May I take this opportunity to

wish them luck in their new premises.

Although, as mentioned earlier, £1.1bn worth of exports is an

impressive achievement, it only amounts to a 2.2% share of the

total market and, like most other major trading partners, the UK

has been gradually losing market share to China and other regional

suppliers in recent years. In fact 75% of Hong Kong's imports now

come from her near neighbours.

It is obviously disappointing that

we do not have a larger share of the market in what is still a

British territory, but a further disconcerting factor is that the

FRG overtook the UK as leading European supplier last year.

However, I know that UK companies like yourselves are pressing hard

vte19mon.210

6