The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government has called on the United States to immediately withdraw its new origin marking requirement on Hong Kong products, Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Edward Yau Tang-wah said on Wednesday.
Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Edward Yau Tang-wah expressed the HKSAR government’s strong objection to the new US new origin marking requirement on Hong Kong products, something he has previously described as “barbaric”, at a meeting with acting US consul general to Hong Kong and Macau Paul Horowitz
Yau expressed the SAR government’s strong objection to the new US requirement, something he has previously described as “barbaric”, at a meeting with acting US consul general to Hong Kong and Macau Paul Horowitz. The US has demanded that all goods made in the city be labeled as “Made in China”. The original deadline of Sept 25 has been extended till Nov 9.
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Yau said the SAR government has also instructed Hong Kong’s economic and trade offices in the US to express strong opposition to US Trade Representative Robert E. Lighthizer and reassert Hong Kong’s intention to safeguard its interests.
Yau said that he hoped the US government would show more respect to World Trade Organization regulations and initiate bilateral talks under existing WTO mechanisms in the spirit of negotiations.
Yau said the local business community is looking to solve the matter in ways that conform to WTO principles.
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Criticizing the US move as “the big bullying the small”, Yau said the Basic Law has granted Hong Kong a high degree of autonomy and the right to represent itself on the international stage. He described Hong Kong as a well-recognized and dutiful WTO member, and said it will defend its interests.
