The Financial Secretary, Paul Chan Mo-po, traveled to Brussels, Belgium, on Wednesday (Paris time) to meet with European Union (EU) authorities and European business leaders to promote Hong Kong's unique advantages.
Upon his arrival, Chan met with several EU officials to exchange views on the economic, financial, trade, and fiscal policy experiences of Hong Kong and Europe, exploring avenues to further promote bilateral cooperation.
During these meetings, Chan briefed officials on Hong Kong's latest economic and financial developments. He emphasized that despite the challenging international geopolitical and economic climate, Hong Kong continues to maintain its status as a free port with the free flow of capital, information, and talent under the "one country, two systems" framework.
He added that Hong Kong consistently adheres to international best practices in business, accounting, and professional services, maintains stable and predictable economic and trade policies, and continuously innovates to develop its financial markets.
He welcomed the European business and investment communities to fully leverage Hong Kong as a premier platform to raise funds and expand their reach into mainland and broader Asian markets.
Chan highlighted opportunities for Hong Kong and Europe to strengthen cooperation across various fields. In the financial sector, for instance, both sides could explore dual-listing arrangements for European enterprises, develop fixed-income and currency markets, promote green finance and financial innovation, and better channel private savings to support industries and economic growth.
Chan also met with Valérie Urbain, Chief Executive Officer of the European financial intermediary Euroclear, to discuss the global economic outlook and financial market trends.
He also met with a representative of a prominent local family to learn about their group's business development in Hong Kong and Asia, suggesting that the group establish its regional headquarters in Hong Kong to manage its regional business and treasury operations.
Additionally, Chan called on Cai Run, Head of Mission and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People's Republic of China to the EU, as well as Fei Shengchao, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the PRC to the Kingdom of Belgium.
They held in-depth discussions on China-Europe relations and the latest developments in Hong Kong.
Chan will depart on Thursday (Brussels time) for the visit to Zurich, Switzerland.
