The Business and Professionals Alliance for Hong Kong (BPA) is expecting to see more measures to promote cross-border e-commerce locally and build the city into a comprehensive service hub for the Belt and Road Initiative in this year’s Policy Address.
The BPA, a political party focusing on the benefits of Hong Kong’s business and professional sectors, joined the line for submitting suggestions to Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu, as the consultation process for the next Policy Address, to be delivered later this year, kicked off last week.
Along with the 147 suggestions the BPA submitted to Lee on Tuesday, the party highlighted the booming development of the Chinese mainland’s e-commerce industry, with a market size surpassing 16 trillion yuan ($2.2 trillion).
The BPA called on the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government to make good use of its advantages in trade, exhibitions and logistics and to seek more preferential policies from the central government, in a bid to help Hong Kong enterprises get involved in the nation’s cross-boundary e-commerce and seize the huge opportunities there.
The BPA also advised the SAR government to further strengthen its local and overseas promotion of Hong Kong's advantages in infrastructure and policy in the e-commerce field and to train more e-commerce talent.
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During a news conference on Tuesday, BPA Chairman Lo Wai-kwok, who is also a lawmaker and veteran engineer, said the development of cross-border e-commerce can promote the development of new quality productive forces, or productivity driven by high-end technologies.
Lo also suggested that the government should enhance its support for Hong Kong enterprises that are exploring the cross-border e-commerce market for B2C (business to customer), including expanding the scope of goods covered by the customs’ fast-clearance channel.
Jeffery Lam Kin-fung, vice-chairman of the BPA and a legislator representing the business sector, said that developing cross-boundary e-commerce can also bolster the flow of cross-border data, improve the digital infrastructure and build the city into an international information center.
In addition, the party said that Hong Kong could be built into a comprehensive hub serving capital, professional services, intellectual property and other exchanges between economies engaging in the BRI.
The party also advised the SAR government to expand its service network of business support for Hong Kong companies stationed in the nine mainland cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.
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Priscilla Leung Mei-fun, a barrister and legislator from the BPA, called on the SAR government to promote Hong Kong’s robust legal services industry to the world, turn the city into an international arbitration seat for economies involved in the BRI, and help more mainland cities learn about Hong Kong’s strengths in the legal and dispute resolution sectors.
As for legal talent, Leung said she hopes that the law schools of universities in Hong Kong can invite more overseas experts to give lectures in Hong Kong and cultivate more talent that is familiar with the legal systems in the BRI economies.
Contact the writer at:fangxue@chinadailyhk.com