[Concurrent] Chen Maobo, Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government
Since the return of Hong Kong, the development has been very vigorous. The total market value of our stock market was only more than 3 trillion (HKD) at that time, and now it is more than 40 trillion (HKD).
[Commentary] On the eve of the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland, Chen Maobo, the Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, was interviewed by the media.
He said that since the handover, Hong Kong's status as an international financial center has grown by leaps and bounds.
But the journey has not been smooth.
Hong Kong has faced crises many times. The reason why Hong Kong has been able to survive smoothly is inseparable from the support and help of the motherland.
[Concurrent] Chen Maobo, Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government
After the return, we encountered the Asian financial crisis, and later also encountered the bursting of the Internet stock (bubble), as well as the global financial tsunami in 2008. We have all passed through these one by one. The solid support and help from the state in this process is the most important. important.
We have experienced the "black violence" in 2019, passed the legislation of the National Security Law for Hong Kong, and passed the perfect election system in 2021, so we can better focus on the economy, development, and improving people's livelihood.
From the administrative and legislative relationship can also be said to be a relatively benign interaction.
So today, 25 years after the handover, we feel that we have entered a new stage in the history of Hong Kong's development, and we are full of expectations.
[Explanation] The new crown epidemic has brought many uncertainties to Hong Kong's future economic development. How can Hong Kong continue to consolidate its status as an international financial center?
Chen Maobo said that Hong Kong's institutional advantages and competitiveness have not changed, especially the continuous improvement of Hong Kong's business environment, and various data show that investors have full confidence in Hong Kong.
[Concurrent] Chen Maobo, Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government
The future development of Hong Kong as an international financial center is still inseparable from the policies and support given to us by the state.
Under the current international situation, sometimes there are some inaccurate and untrue reports about Hong Kong, and even some very biased criticisms of us, but it cannot change the advantages of our system and our competitiveness.
At the end of 2019, the total deposits in Hong Kong banks were about 13 trillion (HKD), and by the end of 2021, bank deposits were more than 15 trillion (HKD).
There will be 9,049 companies in Hong Kong headquartered abroad or in the Mainland in 2021, which is a record high.
There are more than 3,700 start-ups in Hong Kong, which is also an all-time high.
So we are very optimistic in this regard.
[Explanation] In recent years, in the context of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the interaction between Hong Kong's financial market and the mainland has continued to deepen. A milestone in capital interconnection in the Greater Bay Area.
He said that in the future, there will be more products that are interconnected with the mainland market.
[Concurrent] Chen Maobo, Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government
For example, can the range of qualified investors be broadened and the investment products enriched.
We are looking forward to this.
In the future, in terms of interconnection, we feel that there are still many things that can be done.
The main reason is that our country's economic volume is constantly improving and its competitiveness is very strong.
So for international investors, in terms of his asset allocation, his weight ratio will increase.
We feel that there is still a lot of room for prudential tools to be introduced in the future to manage risk products.
[Explanation] As a traditional industry in Hong Kong, the financial industry has always accounted for a large proportion of Hong Kong's economic growth.
Chen Maobo said that in order to change the single industry situation, the SAR government had been committed to cultivating emerging industries.
Among them, the industrial ecosystem of innovative technology has gradually matured, and it is expected to become a new engine for Hong Kong's economic development in the future.
[Concurrent] Chen Maobo, Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government
In order to attract more overseas talents to do scientific research in Hong Kong, 10 billion (HKD) has been allocated to do innovative research, and now 28 scientific research laboratories have been opened.
We have also increased funding for national laboratories and sub-centers of science and technology research centers in Hong Kong, hoping to increase investment in scientific research in this area.
In addition, we also took some money from our foreign exchange reserves, and this money will be invested in our innovation and technology industry and into enterprises in the Greater Bay Area.
Recently, we took a look. The atmosphere of innovation and technology in the society is much better. As long as we continue to work hard in this area, we will definitely achieve results.
Reporter Wang Shibo Yang Chengchen reports from Hong Kong
Responsible editor: [Sun Jingbo]