Hong Kong promotion symposium held in Osaka

A major symposium on promotion of Hong Kong- Japan business cooperation was held Thursday in western Japanese commercial city of Osaka, attracting more than 900 business leaders, officials and academics from Osaka and its surrounding region of Kansai.

The event, titled "think GLOBAL think HONG KONG", was organized by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) jointly with the Japan External Trade Organization and other local institutions, with the aim to help small and medium-sized Japanese firms based in Osaka and the Kansai region, realize new overseas commercial or trading opportunities, particularly in mainland China via Hong Kong.

A delegation of more than 10 Hong Kong business sectors, and government officials throughout the day also took part in a series of programs scheduled at a major hotel in the city center.

Presiding over the opening of the largest symposium ever launched in Osaka by the HKTDC, its Executive Director Fred Lam stressed that while Hong Kong and Osaka had enjoyed close business cooperation for years, the place should be an ideal partner for Japanese business, from design and the creative industries to technology specialists interested in taking advantage of all that the mainland Chinese market could offer. "Hong Kong is the natural gateway to mainland China."

"We show in the Osaka event the strength of Hong Kong and its services industries that have built business connections and expertise that no other economy in the world could match", Lam noted.

Also speaking at the event, Gregory So Kam-leung, Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region said since Hong Kong and Osaka could see a lot of things in common such as brisk commercial roles played by small and medium sized enterprises in the cites or frank character of the local peoples, the two business centers could more cooperate each other to develop the Asian region, especially the mainland Chinese market.

He also stressed Hong Kong could easily become the preferred partner for many of the foreign companies so that they can utilize the Hong Kong's simple tax scheme plus its common law system to increase opportunities brought by economic interaction. Meanwhile, Osaka Governor Ichiro Matsui said at the symposium that the Osaka event was the best place to explain Osaka and the Kansai area which have many advanced industries including machinery, metal or even pharmaceutical, and to strengthen business ties with Hong Kong which is the gateway to Chinese mainland and the most important business hub in Asia-Pacific.

"Osaka will, without doubt, work with Hong Kong to promote our business and trading opportunities, exchanging our information and technology of the local industries between the two so that we can establish win-win partnership in the long term strategy", Matsui said.

Following the main symposium, more than 40 speakers from Hong Kong and Japan joined in several thematic sessions and seminars while individual consultation booths were arranged for all participants in the afternoon.