Chief Executive John Lee on Wednesday called on foreign investors to make good use of Hong Kong for their Belt and Road projects, saying connections with the economies under the global infrastructure initiative has boosted the city's trade. Speaking at the Belt and Road Summit, Lee said the SAR, as China's most open and international city, is perfectly positioned to play a pivotal role in the initiative. "Investors around the world, and that includes over 2,700 family offices here, can take full advantage of Hong Kong, and its broad range of professional services, from financial and legal services, to architectural, engineering, logistics and more, for their Belt and Road projects," he said. Citing recent economic figures, Lee lauded the impact brought by the Belt and Road Initiative. "Between 2013 and 2023, Hong Kong's external trade with Belt and Road economies, other than the mainland, has surged by almost 60 percent, 3.8 times the growth rate of our trade with all economies," he said. "Last year, Belt and Road economies accounted for more than 43 percent of Hong Kong's external trade, in value, with the rest of the world other than the mainland. That compares with less than one-third in 2013. These figures reflect the enormous potential, and promise, of the Belt and Road." The chief executive also said more than 4,000 students from Belt and Road countries had come to study in publicly funded university programmes through a scholarship, adding that they could benefit from the city's talent admission schemes and stay for up to two years after graduation to look for opportunities. Li Yongjie, the deputy China international trade representative of the commerce ministry, told the same event that Beijing would further expand the scope of a free trade agreement signed between the mainland and Hong Kong and give the city more room to to participate in the Belt and Road Initiative. "We support Hong Kong in signing free trade and investment protection agreements with more countries and regions, while backing Hong Kong in joining the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership as soon as possible," she said. "We support Hong Kong in enhancing its status as an international financial, maritime and trade centre and in playing an important role as a hub and platform in the Belt and Road economic and trade cooperation." More than 6,000 people from 70 countries and regions, including delegates from 38 state-owned enterprises, are attending the two-day summit in Hong Kong.
