ENG-2014 — Page 126

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Commerce and Industry

To help Hong Kong enterprises capitalise on the opportunities arising from the National 12th Five-Year Plan, the government introduced a $1 billion dedicated fund in 2012 to assist them in furthering their development in the Mainland through developing brands, upgrading and restructuring operations, and promoting domestic sales in the Mainland.

Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreements

To assure overseas investors that their investments in Hong Kong are adequately protected, and to enable Hong Kong investors to enjoy similar protection overseas, Hong Kong has signed 17 Investment Promotion and Protection Agreements (IPPAs) with other economies, and has concluded IPPA negotiations with Bahrain and Myanmar. In 2014, Hong Kong continued IPPA negotiations with the Russian Federation and announced the launch of IPPA negotiations with the United Arab Emirates.

Trade in Textiles

Import and export of textiles and clothing have been fully liberalised following the removal of all licensing controls by the government on 21 November 2014.

In 2014, the Customs and Excise Department carried out 2,435 factory and consignment. inspections and concluded 36 investigations to combat illegal transhipment of textiles. The department also conducted 27 'blitz' check operations on textile consignments at various import and export control points. It successfully prosecuted 32 companies and three offenders, with fines amounting to $0.83 million.

Trade in Strategic Commodities

The Trade and Industry Department maintains a comprehensive import and export control licensing system to monitor the movement of strategic commodities through Hong Kong. The system ensures that while Hong Kong has access to advanced products and technologies to sustain its economic development, it is not used as a conduit for illicit diversion of strategic commodities. The department also administers a permit system to monitor activities involving sensitive chemicals as required by the Chemical Weapons Convention. Hong Kong co-operates closely with its trading partners to keep abreast of international developments on strategic trade controls, and to make sure that its control arrangements are complementary to those of its trading partners.

In 2014, the Customs and Excise Department investigated 204 cases of unlicensed import and export of strategic commodities and prosecuted 32 companies, resulting in fines of $0.85 million. Goods valued at $0.67 million were confiscated.

Customs Co-operation

The Customs and Excise Department plays an active role in the work of the World Customs Organisation (WCO) and APEC's Sub-Committee on Customs Procedures. The department maintains close liaison with the WCO, and seconds three officers to the WCO Compliance and Facilitation Directorate in Brussels, Belgium, the WCO Regional Intelligence Liaison Office for Asia and the Pacific in Seoul, Korea, and the WCO Asia Pacific Regional Office for Capacity Building in Bangkok, Thailand respectively. They assist to take forward the WCO's initiatives.

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