Our Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong delegation visited Association of Southeast Asian Nations countries in early September. Starry Lee Wai-king led the tour to Indonesia; Gary Chan Hak-kan and I led a tour to Vietnam and Thailand; Brave Chan Yung and Chan Hok-fung led a trip to Singapore and Malaysia.
Our tour was fruitful, and I trust that our tour had a far-reaching impact upon the economic ties between Hong Kong and ASEAN countries, not least the future efforts needed to tilt Hong Kong’s economy toward ASEAN markets.
Needless to say, we have seen the rapidly growing importance of ASEAN, given its enormous market potential, plus the increasingly closer relationship between the Chinese mainland and ASEAN.
I shall focus more on introducing Vietnam and Thailand in this article.
There is still a long way to go in order to develop our bilateral economic relations with ASEAN; hopefully, more exchanges on both government and business levels will follow, especially to explore joint development and thus synergy with the Bay Area
The annual economic growth of Vietnam this year and next year is expected to reach over 7.5 percent and 6.7 percent respectively. For Thailand, with the complete reopening of the nation to reboot its renowned tourism, its annual economic growth is expected to reach over 3 percent this year.
In 2021, Vietnam, with a population of 98 million, is Hong Kong’s seventh-largest major trading partner. Thailand ranked as Hong Kong’s 10th-largest major trading partner; its population is 71 million. The China-Thailand railway project is due to be complete in a few years, which will surely help boost the economy there. Both Vietnam and Thailand are significant trading markets for Hong Kong with huge potential for further cooperation.
Via the visit, we intended to explore more opportunities and enhance bilateral economic relations between Hong Kong and ASEAN. We reached out to a wide range of local business representatives there. First and foremost, we shared with them the latest developments of Hong Kong. Anti-China Western media outlets and politicians have spared no effort to spread falsehoods about Hong Kong and to discredit the National Security Law for Hong Kong and the rule of law of Hong Kong. Lest the media outlets have misled the local business communities there, this tour offered us a good chance to set the record straight.
With the enactment of the National Security Law for Hong Kong, the city is back on its feet, restoring peace, order and stability. Hong Kong’s dynamic and vibrant business environment is well-known all over the world. Some foreign businesses have concerns over the time limit of “one country, two systems”; we addressed this issue by assuring them that “one country, two systems” best suits both the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and the nation, so there is no reason to impose any time limit on it at all, as pointed out by President Xi Jinping in his speech delivered at the assembly celebrating the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the HKSAR on July 1.
We were so fascinated by the local businesses there expressing their confidence in China and the Hong Kong SAR. They indeed see eye to eye with us that Hong Kong will continue to thrive under “one country, two systems”.
We also highlighted Hong Kong’s edge on our renowned legal and dispute resolution services. Foreign businesses can always count on our common law system. On arbitration, Hong Kong has become one of the top five destinations worldwide for arbitration. Arbitration awards given in Hong Kong are recognized and enforceable in over 160 countries that have signed the New York Convention.
In the course of our exchanges, we perceived that local businesses are also interested in making use of Hong Kong’s stock market for financing. Now there are only 84 companies with ASEAN headquarters listed in Hong Kong. With the economy growing in ASEAN, there is a huge potential for further development in this area. With support from the mainland, Hong Kong’s stock market is the champion in the region in terms of its ability to raise capital.
Take the Eastern Economic Corridor in Thailand as an example — there are over 170 Chinese companies in the Rayong Industrial Park alone. The Sunwah Innovation Center in Vietnam was launched with Hong Kong capital and will nurture a lot of startups. One can tell the potential and the demand for future financing.
There is still a long way to go in order to develop our bilateral economic relations with ASEAN; hopefully, more exchanges on both government and business levels will follow, especially to explore joint development and thus synergy with the Greater Bay Area.
Holden Chow Ho-ding is vice-chairman of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, and a member of the Legislative Council.
*The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.