Xuhui District of Shanghai holds investment promotion conference in Hong Kong to boost two-way co-op

The Shanghai Xuhui· Hong Kong Investment Promotion Conference was held Friday in Hong Kong, the second stop of the Xuhui· Shanghai Investment Forum, a global promotion event of Xuhui District of Shanghai in 2023.

Relevant departments of Xuhui District showed the latest industrial development advantages and future investment opportunities of Xuhui District at the conference which was hosted by the People's Government of Xuhui District, Shanghai, with the support of Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC), Hongkong Land and the Bank of China.

More than 150 attendees, including government officials, representatives of business associations, entrepreneurs and professionals from Shanghai and Hong Kong, have witnessed at the conference the signing of memorandums of cooperation between Xuhui District and institutions like Bank of China (Hong Kong) Limited, the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce (HKGCC), the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce (CGCC), etc.

They have also witnessed the opening ceremony of the Shanghai Xuhui & Hong Kong Investment Promotion Service Center.

Photo shows the opening ceremony of the Shanghai Xuhui & Hong Kong Investment Promotion Service Center held in Hong Kong, April 21, 2023.

Photo shows the signing ceremony of memorandums of understanding between Xuhui District and institutions in Hong Kong held in Hong Kong, April 21, 2023.

The cooperation between Xuhui and Hong Kong started in 1992, and up to now, Hong Kong has invested more than 25 billion U.S. dollars in Xuhui District. Many multinationals have set their Asia-Pacific headquarters in Hong Kong and their China headquarters in Xuhui District, further promoting the increasingly close economic and trade links between the two places.

Hong Kong and Xuhui have not only a fine tradition of cooperation, but also highly compatible future development strategies, said Cao Liqiang, Party chief of Xuhui District.

The two sides are complementary in industries, he noted, adding that Hong Kong has a solid foundation in trade, finance and technological innovation, with many of its practices worth learning by Xuhui, while Xuhui has convenient transportation, rich scientific, educational and cultural resources, and complete services, which can also help with Hong Kong's economic development and the growth of its enterprises.

Cathy Yip, associate director with HKTDC, believed that by leveraging Hong Kong's position, advantages and characteristics in international finance, the two sides can strengthen cooperation in green finance, financial technology, virtual assets and wealth management, and meanwhile carry out cooperation in biomedicine by taking their advantages in the sector, as well as innovative cooperation in technology application, digital transformation and business model innovation.

As both Shanghai and Hong Kong have highly-open and international capital markets and regulatory regimes that are aligned with major overseas markets, Joseph Chan, Under Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury of Hong Kong, pointed out that enterprises in Shanghai can use Hong Kong's listing and bond issuance platforms to reduce their financing costs by "bringing in" funds, and set up international business headquarters and financial centers in Hong Kong to expand international business by "going global".

Hongkong Land is a Hong Kong enterprise deeply involved in the development and construction of Xuhui District. Currently, the company has a financial hub project under construction in Xuhui District, with a total construction area of more than 1.1 million square meters. "We believe that the Xuhui District government will continue to promote policy innovation, provide better services and guarantees for enterprises, and let more enterprises thrive in Xuhui District," remarked Ling Changfeng, an executive director with the company.

"Since the establishment of the headquarters of Greater China, Hyatt Hotels Corporation (in Shanghai), we have felt the concept of openness and win-win upheld by the district Party committee and government," said Yu Xiaojun, vice president of operations with Greater China, Hyatt Hotels Corporation. Yu called for and expected more excellent business partners to come to Xuhui for a shared future.

Ernst & Young (EY) has been a partner of Xuhui District for 25 years, and was also one of the first companies to respond to the "Xuhui investment promotion partner" programme launched in 2022. As a global investment partner of Xuhui, EY will continue to cooperate with Xuhui government and industry partners in various fields by relying on its own global network resources and platforms, so as to jointly promote the high-quality development of Xuhui, stated Jasmine Lee, a partner of EY.