ENG-2018 — Page 17

Calendar of Events 2018

January

6

8

19

20

22-26

23

26

Ms Teresa Cheng Yeuk-wah, SC, assumes duty as the Secretary for Justice following the departure of Mr Rimsky Yuen Kwok-keung, SC, from the post.

At the ceremonial opening of the legal year, the Chief Justice of the Court of Final Appeal, Mr Geoffrey Ma Tao-li, says it is healthy that members of the community take an interest in the operation of the law, in the administration of justice and in all aspects of the rule of law in Hong Kong. It is essential that any comments that may be made about the work of the Judiciary, whether seemingly positive or negative, should be done on an informed basis, he says.

Hong Kong, represented by the Scallywag sailing team, wins the Melbourne-Hong Kong leg of the 11-leg triennial Volvo Ocean Race that takes seven teams across 45,000 nautical miles in four oceans, the longest since the event's inaugural 1973-74 edition. The city joins for the first time as a race participant and a host city, setting up a Race Village in Kai Tak to hold the Hong Kong Stopover.

Cyclists Leung Chun-wing and Cheung King-lok win the men's madison team event in the fifth of the six-leg 2017-18 Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) Track Cycling World Cup series in Minsk, Belarus.

The Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, visits Switzerland and attends the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting in Davos for the first time in her capacity as Chief Executive. She meets the Vice-President of the Swiss Federal Council and Finance Minister, Mr Ueli Maurer, in Bern; and the United Kingdom Chancellor of the Exchequer, Mr Philip Hammond; the WEF Founder and Executive Chairman, Professor Klaus Schwab; and the Director General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Mr Roberto Azevedo, in Davos.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) commends Hong Kong in a Staff Report for being well placed to navigate both external and domestic challenges, given the strong policy frameworks and ample buffers, including strong fiscal reserves and robust regulatory frameworks. The IMF underlines its continued support for the Linked Exchange Rate System, which links the Hong Kong dollar (HKD) to the US dollar (USD) at the rate of about HK$7.80 to US$1.

The Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Edward Yau Tang-wah, says at the WTO Informal Ministerial Gathering in Davos that Hong Kong will continue to work closely with WTO members to bring unfinished business to fruition and to pursue other initiatives that can reinvigorate the WTO.

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