Hong Kong Commerce and Economic Development Bureau: Deepen Hong Kong-Mainland economic and trade cooperation, continue to expand international networks.

On October 8, at the Legislative Council meeting, during the joint debate (fourth session) on the motion on the "Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan" and the motion of thanks for the 2026 Policy Address, Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Yau Ying-wah said in his speech that, on the one hand, Hong Kong should seize the opportunities brought by the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and deepen economic and trade cooperation between Hong Kong and the mainland; on the other hand, it should also continue to expand its international networks, make good use of Hong Kong's advantages in connecting the mainland with the world, and turn cooperation opportunities into tangible results. Yau Ying-wah introduced that the Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement, namely CEPA, is the most core cornerstone for promoting economic integration and trade growth between the mainland and Hong Kong. In 2025, the total merchandise trade between the two places was about HK$5.6 trillion, more than three times that before the implementation of CEPA in 2003, with an average annual growth of 6.1%. As of the end of August 2026, the cumulative tariff preferences involved in customs clearance goods covered under CEPA were close to RMB 11 billion. In terms of trade in services, the mainland and Hong Kong have basically achieved liberalization of trade in services. The Five-Year Plan states that CEPA should be continuously upgraded in an all-round way. Hong Kong will continue to work with the Ministry of Commerce of the country to promote the comprehensive upgrading of CEPA, deepen cooperation with the mainland's services sector, expand market access and areas of opening up in the mainland, and strive to promote a higher level of opening up in the Greater Bay Area through pilot schemes. On the other hand, the Hong Kong government is gradually advancing Phase III of the "Trade Single Window" and strengthening interconnection with Guangdong's International Trade Single Window to expand the application scope of "one declaration, two submissions" and facilitate customs clearance of goods between Hong Kong and Guangdong. Hong Kong will seize the opportunities provided by different international platforms and strengthen exchanges with various economies on trade, investment and other economic issues. At present, Hong Kong has signed nine free trade agreements with 21 economies and 25 investment agreements with 34 overseas economies. Yau Ying-wah said that in the next five years, Hong Kong will continue to cultivate markets in Europe and the United States, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Middle East, while actively exploring emerging markets such as Central Asia and Africa. In response to the National 15th Five-Year Plan's requirement for Hong Kong to give play to its professional services advantages and assist enterprises in "going global," the Mainland Enterprises Going Global Task Force, established in October last year, has so far assisted more than 340 mainland enterprises in setting up or expanding operations in Hong Kong, of which about 30% have even set up Hong Kong as their regional or international headquarters or corporate treasury center. Next, the Going Global Task Force will further deepen cooperation with industry associations and professional organizations in Hong Kong and the mainland. At the same time, the Going Global Task Force will expand the cross-sector professional service platform, add "Environmental, Social and Governance" (ESG) services, and optimize the platform's matching function between enterprises and Hong Kong professional service institutions, so as to consolidate Hong Kong's position as a platform for going global. Hong Kong will strive to become the preferred partner and multilateral cooperation hub for countries jointly building the Belt and Road. Last month's 11th Belt and Road Summit attracted more than 6,200 political and business leaders from over 70 countries and regions, during which more than 60 memorandums of cooperation were reached. Together with new projects and transactions implemented before and during the forum, the total value exceeded US$3.1 billion. Hong Kong will enhance the forum's function as an important economic and trade cooperation platform to bring about more practical cooperation results, continue to organize trade delegations to Belt and Road countries to explore business opportunities, strengthen the promotion of the "Hong Kong - Overseas Project Platform" to Hong Kong enterprises, encourage and appropriately assist overseas entities in conducting roadshows in Hong Kong for suitable landmark projects, and strengthen the function of Hong Kong's Belt and Road capacity-building platform. Yau Ying-wah concluded that, looking ahead, the Hong Kong Commerce and Economic Development Bureau will continue to take the Five-Year Plan and the Policy Address as its action agenda, do a good job in connecting internally and externally, enable Hong Kong to better integrate into and serve the overall development of the country, and also create more space for practical cooperation between Hong Kong and the rest of the world.