Secretary for Commerce & Economic Development Algernon Yau today hosted a cocktail reception to update guests on the continuous efforts of the overseas Hong Kong Economic & Trade Offices (ETOs) and the Mainland Offices in promoting Hong Kong’s strengths and opportunities.

About 200 guests including representatives of consulates, chambers of commerce and major trade associations as well as members of relevant government boards and committees attended.

The reception was held while the heads of the 14 ETOs and five Mainland Offices were in Hong Kong for an annual meeting.

Speaking at the reception, Mr Yau said the ETOs and Mainland Offices have arranged or supported a large number of duty visits conducted by senior government officials in the past year to promote Hong Kong's unique advantages and vast opportunities for businesses and investments.

He stressed that despite geopolitical tensions, Hong Kong's economic outlook remained optimistic, adding that the city regained its status as the world's freest economy among 165 economies in the latest Fraser Institute report.

With the motherland's staunch support, Hong Kong will continue to leverage its unique strengths and improve on its free and open business environment, the commerce chief said.

Mr Yau briefed the guests on an array of initiatives announced in the 2024 Policy Address to spearhead strategies to develop and nurture high value-added industries, such as developing Hong Kong into a multinational supply chain management centre, creating a commodity trading ecosystem and developing an international gold trading centre.

He also highlighted the recent policy breakthroughs to fortify Hong Kong's position as an ideal investment hub, such as liberalisation measures under the amended Agreement on Trade in Services under the framework of the Mainland & Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement, and visa facilitation to enable convenient entry into the Mainland by non-Chinese permanent residents in Hong Kong.

Mr Yau noted that with the distinct advantages of enjoying strong support from the country while maintaining unparalleled connectivity with the global trading system, Hong Kong will continue to integrate into the overall development of the country, acting as the “super connector" and "super value-adder" for foreign investments to connect with the vast Mainland market, and capitalise on the opportunities brought by the Belt & Road Initiative and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area development.

“We will also continue to proactively make efforts to explore possible enhancement to our ETO network. As announced earlier, we are working on setting up new offices in Kuala Lumpur and Riyadh to strengthen our ties with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the Middle East,” he added.

Emphasising collaboration, Mr Yau called for continuous support from business leaders to join hands with the ETOs in promoting Hong Kong to overseas counterparts.