Hong Kong Middle East Mission and Business Opportunities
The Hong Kong Trade Development Council is launching a week-long business mission to the Middle East in response to Hong Kong’s reopening of its border.
During the mission, 13 memorandums of understanding were signed, indicating new broad opportunities for cooperation between HK and Middle Eastern companies, focusing on finance, business, and technology, and transport.
More than 30 business leaders from finance, economics, technology, and professional services joined the mission in the Middle East.
By showing how good things are in Hong Kong, the mission showed how strong the city’s economy and trade are, making it a leading business and investment center in Asia. The mission also deepened cultural exchanges between Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates, which helped attract investment and business to Hong Kong.
The Hong Kong delegation met with government officials, local chambers of commerce, including the Saudi China Business Council, and the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce, the latter of which also announced the establishment of Hong Kong.
The head of HKTDC said that the Middle East is important for the global economy and supports the Belt and Road Initiative. As Hong Kong reopens to the world, they have lost. There is no time to organize a Hong Kong business group in the Middle East led by the CEO and three key officials. Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) called on Saudi Arabian and UAE companies to take advantage of HK’s investment and business opportunities.
Stocks in Asia-Pacific opportunities
Asia-Pacific stocks were mostly lower as investors awaited the release of key economic data, including the US consumer price index.
The Hang Seng Index fell fractionally in Hong Kong, while the Hang Seng Tech Index rose 0.54%. In China, the Shanghai Composite rose 0.723% to 3,284.15, while the Shenzhen Composite rose 1.15% to 12,123.6.
The country’s Ministry of Trade and Industry maintained its 2023 GDP forecast at 0.53% to 2.51%, saying growth prospects for Singapore’s aviation and tourism-related sectors have increased.
The recovery of international air travel and inbound tourism is expected to accelerate.
On the other hand, the growth prospects of other externally oriented sectors remain at risk.
Chinese tech giants Baidu, Alibaba, and NetEase are joining Microsoft and Google in developing chatbots like ChatGPT, but analysts said China’s AI technology would take some time to catch on.
