UK held Hong Kong finance talks last year

The UK stepped up private discussions to deepen financial services ties with Hong Kong, people familiar with the matter said.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves in the fourth quarter of 2024 deployed Treasury officials to hold talks with their counterparts in Hong Kong to explore improving economic relations, according to the people, who asked for anonymity discussing behind-the scenes negotiations.

The contrast highlights the tricky task Reeves and Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer face as they balance Britain’s economic interests against its democratic principles in pursuit of closer ties with China. It follows a fraught period during which disagreements over Hong Kong’s security legislation, China’s sanctioning of several British lawmakers, and UK allegations of Chinese cyberattacks have weighed on the relationship.

The UK Treasury declined to comment. A spokesman for the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau in Hong Kong said: “As an international financial center, Hong Kong is committed to fostering bilateral and multilateral exchanges and cooperation with regions across the globe, including the United Kingdom.”

The conversations took place as part of the new Labour government’s efforts to boost economic growth in the UK, a British official said, a policy which has seen Starmer seek a thaw in relations with China, after they soured under the previous Conservative administration. They noted that the last Tory government also held talks with Hong Kong.

In the meantime, the UK government is pushing forward with its rapprochement. China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi is visiting London on Thursday to meet Foreign Secretary David Lammy, the latest in a series of summits aimed at boosting trade and economic ties with a particular focus on financial services. Reeves traveled to Beijing and Shanghai in January.

Hong Kong’s Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Christopher Hui Ching-yu, has visited Europe, including the UK, three times since 2020, the Treasury Bureau spokesman said.

Bloomberg