China's Ministry of Commerce spokesperson He Yongqian Photo: Yin Yeping/GT

A spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) said on Thursday that the Chinese mainland will continue to expand institutional opening-up toward the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), and help promote Hong Kong's long-term prosperity and stability.

He Yongqian, the MOFCOM spokesperson, made the remarks at the regular press conference held on Thursday, in response to a question about the highlights and details of the important economic and trade achievements in the HKSAR as this month marks the 28th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to motherland. 

Over the past 28 years, the economic and trade exchanges and cooperation between the mainland and the HKSAR have become closer and the level has been continuously improved. Hong Kong has actively aligned with the national development strategy, accelerated its integration into the overall national development, and played an important bridging role in building a new development pattern, He said, adding that the regulators on the mainland and in Hong Kong signed arrangements and series of agreements on establishing closer economic and trade exchanges.

The Chinese mainland has fully realized the liberalization of goods trade and basically realized the liberalization of service trade with the HKSAR, and has carried out rich and pragmatic cooperation in trade and investment facilitation, according to the spokesperson. 

"At the same time, we continue to promote a series of specific measures in the business field to support the construction of the Greater Bay Area, and strongly support Hong Kong's participation in the joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)," He said. 

In addition, the MOFCOM will work with relevant departments to take measures to ensure the stable supply and quality safety of Dongguan's fresh agricultural products, strongly support the improvement of Hong Kong's livelihood and maintain social stability in Hong Kong, according to the spokesperson.

In the 28 years since Hong Kong returned to the motherland, the principle of "One country, Two systems" has achieved great success, He said, noting that this year, Hong Kong was once again rated as the world's freest economy, and its position as an international financial center has remained the third in the world, with its international competitiveness rising continuously. 

The MOFCOM will give full play to the role of the Mainland and Hong Kong Economic and Trade Co-operation Committee, continue to expand the institutional opening-up toward the HKSAR, steadily advance support for the construction of the Greater Bay Area in the business field, support Hong Kong in building a functional platform for the BRI, and contribute to promoting Hong Kong's long-term prosperity and stability, He added. 

Hong Kong-based Cathay recently opens a new IT office in Qianhai of Shenzhen, the largest office in the Chinese mainland spurs greater digital innovation and cooperation across teams in the Greater Bay Area.

Following the establishment of Cathay's Guangzhou IT office in 2024, the opening of the Shenzhen IT office marks another strategic move by Cathay in the Chinese mainland, strengthening collaboration between its teams in Hong Kong, Guangzhou and Shenzhen as part of its digital development in the Greater Bay Area (GBA), according to the information the company shared with the Global Times. 

As a leading pilot zone committed to speeding up in-depth Shenzhen-Hong Kong integration, Qianhai benefits from national policies as well as its own resource-pooling capabilities, making the new office there a key part of Cathay's digital transformation.

The new Shenzhen IT office will synergise with our Hong Kong headquarters and Guangzhou IT office, leveraging Qianhai's position as a regional innovation hub to accelerate our digital development and expand our leading technological capabilities, said Cathay Group Chief Executive Officer Ronald Lam delivered a speech at the opening ceremony.

Global Times