Director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (Toronto) (HKETO), Ms Emily Mo, spoke at the webinar organised by the Association of Chinese Canadian Entrepreneurs (ACCE) Young Entrepreneur Group on March 24. The webinar aims to discuss how Canadian businesses can access the fast-growing markets in Asia with practical lessons from entrepreneurs who have leveraged support from diversified resources towards entering the region.
In delivering the opening remarks, Ms Mo said that the business culture between Hong Kong and Canada are very similar, including that both places have a common law system, rule of law, robust IP protection, strong professional support in a bi-lingual business environment, and free flow of information and capital.
In particular, Hong Kong has a simple and low tax system. "Due to its business advantages and favourable business environment, Hong Kong is Asia’s business hub serving as an operational base for over 9 000 overseas and Mainland companies, including 200 from Canada," Ms Mo added.
Ms Mo also updated participants on the latest developments of Hong Kong, including its role in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area which has a GDP similar to Canada’s and offers new and exciting opportunities for companies from around the world. "Beyond Mainland China, ASEAN is Hong Kong’s 2nd biggest trading partner in goods, and 4th largest in services," Ms Mo said.
As a world-leading global banking and financial hub, a wide variety of industries are thriving in Hong Kong. "In 2020, fintech, e-commerce, supply chain management, logistics technology and professional or consultancy services had the largest numbers of startups in Hong Kong," Ms Mo continued.
Ms Mo noted that despite the economic challenges brought about by the pandemic in 2020, there were over 3 300 startups in Hong Kong, representing an increase of 6% from the previous year. To this end, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government (HKSAR) is committed to offering a fertile start-up environment that is supported by various public and private initiatives, helping entrepreneurs turn great ideas into reality.
Before closing, Ms Mo invited participants of the webinar to obtain more first-hand experience on the range of support and resources offered by the HKSAR Government to the business community by taking part in a discussion panel moderated by Ms Grace Lau, Deputy Head of Investment Promotion, Invest Hong Kong (Canada).
港經貿處處長在創業協進會青年企業家網上研討會上致辭
香港駐多倫多經濟貿易辦事處（香港經貿處）處長巫菀菁於三月二十四日在創業協進會青年企業家小組舉辦的網上研討會上致辭。該研討會旨在探討加拿大企業如何進軍發展迅速的亞洲市場，並分享企業家從不同渠道得到支援而成功進軍該市場的例子。
巫菀菁致開幕辭時表示，香港和加拿大的營商文化很相似，包括兩地均奉行普通法制度及法治、擁有健全的知識產權保護制度、雙語的營商環境、強大的專業服務支援，及資訊和資金自由流通。
巫菀菁特別提到香港實行簡單低稅制，她補充說：「基於香港的營商優勢及優越營商環境，香港作為亞洲的商貿樞紐，是超過9 000間海外及中國內地公司（包括200間加拿大公司）的營運基地。」
此外，巫菀菁向與會者簡介香港的最新發展，包括香港在粵港澳大灣區所扮演的角色。大灣區的本地生產總值與加拿大相近，為全球的企業帶來新機遇。巫菀菁表示：「除了中國內地，東南亞國家聯盟亦是香港第二大商品貿易夥伴及第四大服務貿易夥伴。」
香港作為全球領先的銀行及金融樞紐，一系列相關行業正蓬勃發展。巫菀菁續說：「去年，金融科技、電子商務、供應鏈管理、物流技術及專業或顧問服務等行業在香港設立初創企業的數目為數最多。」
巫菀菁指出，香港的經濟在二Ｏ二Ｏ年雖然因疫情帶來衝擊，但仍然有超過3 300間初創企業在香港設立，較前一年增長6%。為此，香港特別行政區（香港特區）政府會繼續致力透過公私支援計劃，為初創企業提供理想的發展空間，幫助企業家將創意實現。
最後，巫菀菁邀請網上研討會的與會者參加由香港投資推廣署加拿大辦事處副總監劉慧恩主持的小組討論環節，以掌握更多第一手資料，了解香港特區政府向業界提供的各項支持及資助計劃。
