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166073
MDLIAN 4
MANAGING DIRECTOR PEAT MARWICK HONG KONG, AND NGAN, CHAIRMAN SWILYNN INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS LTD, A HONG KONG COMPANY WHOSE FACTORY IN THE UK HAS HAD MIXED FORTUNES. NGAN'S 'WARTS AND ALL' SPEECH DREW PRAISE FOR ITS FRANKNESS. THE SEMINAR ENDED WITH A LIVELY QUESTION AND ANSWER SESSION, FOLLOWED BY A RECEPTION
HOSTED BY IBB.
4. ALTHOUGH THERE WAS VERY LITTLE TIME TO SELECT POSSIBLE PARTICIPANTS FROM THE 5,000 OR SO HONG KONG MANUFACTURING COMPANIES THAT ARE ACTIVELY INVOLVED IN EXPORTING TO THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY, THE TURN-OUT OF OVER 100 SENIOR REPRESENTATIVES FAR EXCEEDED EARLIER EXPECTATIONS. THE RESPONSE AMPLY DEMONSTRATED A KEEN INTEREST IN ESTABLISHING BASES WITHIN THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY
BEFORE THE SINGLE MARKET COMES INTO FORCE IN JANUARY 1993.
5. THE ADVANTAGES OF LOCATING IN THE UK I.E. COMMONALITY OF LANGUAGE AND BUSINESS PRACTICES, LOW TAXATION, LOW LABOUR AND ACCOMMODATION COSTS AND HIGHLY SKILLED LABOUR FORCE, WE CLEARLY PRESENTED, AND, I THINK WERE ACCEPTED BY THE AUDIENCE. AT LEAST SIX OF THE COMPANIES PRESENT HAVE REVEALED INTENTIONS TO SET UP IN THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY AND INDICATED THAT THEY WILL NOW GIVE HIGHER CONSIDERATION TO THE POSSIBILITY OF ESTABLISHING THAT BASE IN THE UK. WE WILL NOW SPEND THE NEXT FOUR WEEKS FOLLOWING UP THESE AND OTHER EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST IN INVESTMENT IN THE UK. A SHORTER-TERM OBJECTIVE WILL BE TO SEND A GROUP OF INDUSTRIALISTS FROM THOSE MOST ACTIVELY INTERESTED ON AN IBB
SPONSORED MISSION TO THE UK IN MID-1992.
6. WE DID NOT SEEK TO INVOLVE THE MEDIA NOR DID WE ADVERTISE THE EVENT. BUT NEITHER DID WE HIDE IT AND A NUMBER OF JOURNALISTS CAME, INCLUDING THE BUSINESS EDITOR OF THE SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST, WHOSE ARTICLE ON 14 NOVEMBER VERY ABLY MADE THE POINTS WE SOUGHT TO GET ACROSS. THE EVENT WAS ALSO FAVOURABLY COVERED IN A CHINESE CHANNEL TV BUSINESS PROGRAMME, AND IN THE CHINESE LANGUAGE PRESS.
COMMENT
7. THE TIMING WAS RIGHT. MANY HONG KONG COMPANIES HAVE REACHED THE STAGE WHERE INVESTMENT IN THEIR MAJOR MARKETS OVERSEAS MAKES SOUND COMMERCIAL SENSE. AS A FIRST TIME EVENT, ORGANISED AT SHORT NOTICE AND ON A VERY MODEST BUDGET, THE SEMINAR WAS HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL. THE VERY GOOD RESPONSE CLEARLY DEMONSTRATED THE CONSIDERABLE INTEREST IN OUTWARD INVESTMENT, AND ALSO THE DEPTH OF IGNORANCE ABOUT THE UK AS A MANUFACTURING BASE WITHIN THE
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