Hong Kong to propel belt and road market expansion, finance chief says Hong Kong will step up support for belt and road enterprises seeking to expand into new markets and tap regional growth, reinforcing its role as a pivotal business hub and platform for deeper exchanges, the city’s finance chief has said. In his weekly blog on Sunday, Paul Chan Mo-po also pointed to strong growth in emerging markets and developing economies in recent years, citing International Monetary Fund projections of a further 3.8 per cent and 4.5 per cent expansion respectively over the coming two years. “The gradual relocation of mainland China’s industrial chains towards belt and road regions is a response to this reality,” he wrote. Chan made the remarks ahead of the 11th Belt and Road Summit in Hong Kong this week. The annual event promotes business among participating nations in the Belt and Road Initiative, Beijing’s project to build a China-centred global trading network. This year’s summit is being held under the theme “Advancing high-quality development, embarking on a new journey”. For the first time, there will be a dedicated “Go Global Chapter” to support mainland firms expanding overseas. Mainland firms have established around 58,000 overseas entities, creating more than 2 million local jobs annually, with an investment stock of US$3.4 trillion, nearly 90 per cent of which is in developing economies, according to Chan. “Market demand is clearly driving industrial-chain deployment, economic growth is attracting capital flows, and the momentum of trade and investment is unmistakable, characterised by vibrant two-way movement,” he said. “Hong Kong stands precisely at the intersection of this two‑way flow.” He said more than 100 belt and road firms with a combined market capitalisation exceeding HK$340 billion (US$43.6 billion) were now listed in the city and some Central Asian state infrastructure firms were also eyeing a debut on the local exchange. “We aim to further assist belt and road enterprises in market expansion, reducing transaction costs and unlocking regional growth potential,” Chan said. Hong Kong has signed double taxation agreements with 43 belt and road jurisdictions, while investment and free trade pacts cover 20 and 14 economies respectively, according to Chan. In bond financing, 82 listed bonds from belt and road regions had been issued in Hong Kong as of July, raising over HK$470 billion, Chan said. He noted that more governments, public institutions and enterprises from Southeast Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East had issued offshore yuan bonds in the city in recent years. As an example, Kazakhstan’s national oil and gas company issued about 3.5 billion yuan last month, the largest such offering by a Central Asian enterprise in Hong Kong, Chan said. “Whether attracting investment or supporting outbound expansion, Hong Kong serves as a pivotal hub and platform for accelerated development and deepened exchanges,” he said. The two-day summit on Wednesday and Thursday will also cover energy, artificial intelligence, the low-altitude economy and urban development, with on‑site visits. There will also be a climate-finance conference this week, co-hosted by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority and the Dubai Financial Services Authority. This event, along with initiatives such as a green technology project accelerator programme and updated sustainable finance classification, showed the city’s commitment to driving regional growth through green technology and finance, Chan said. He added that Hong Kong would continue to leverage its unique advantages under “one country two systems”, from advancing hardware projects and aligning rules through soft connectivity, to fostering people-to-people bonds that bring communities closer together. https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3366538/hong-kong-propel-belt-and-road-market-expansion-finance-chief-says?pgtype=live (ICE HONG KONG)

Fonte notizia: South China Morning Post