Hong Kong and Shanghai on Friday signed 20 agreements to enhance cooperation in various fields, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said after a meeting with top officials from the eastern Chinese city.
Addressing the sixth plenary session of the Hong Kong/Shanghai Co-operation Conference, held in Hong Kong, Lee said apart from the cooperation agreements, the special administrative region has also reached a consensus with Shanghai on 65 projects covering 15 areas, including innovation technology, industrial development, urban planning and management, digital economy, and finance.
He said Friday’s meeting marks new heights of cooperation between Hong Kong and Shanghai, providing a path to future collaboration and expanding the two metropolises’ partnership into more fields.
Lee pledged that Hong Kong will continue to leverage its unique advantages under the “one country, two systems” principle and jointly develop new quality productive forces with Shanghai, in a bid to make a greater contribution to the nation’s high-quality development
The chief executive said that both the central government and the authorities of the two cities have strongly supported the cooperation conference.
“Since its inaugural meeting in 2003, exchanges between the two places have become increasingly frequent,” he said, adding that Hong Kong's investment in Shanghai had increased from $2 billion in 2003 to $17.4 billion in 2023.
Now, Hong Kong is one of Shanghai’s major export markets and its largest source of external investments, he added.
The CE pledged that Hong Kong will continue to leverage its unique advantages under the “one country, two systems” principle and jointly develop new quality productive forces with Shanghai, in a bid to make a greater contribution to the nation’s high-quality development.
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Shanghai Mayor Gong Zheng, who led a delegation to the meeting, said that Shanghai and Hong Kong are two of the most cosmopolitan and modern cities in China, which makes their cooperation crucial to driving the overall progress of the nation.
Under the Shanghai-Hong Kong cooperation mechanism, which was established over 20 years ago, the two cities have engaged in fruitful cooperation in fields such as economics, trade, technology and culture.
Shanghai Mayor Gong Zheng mayor pointed out that while Shanghai is building itself into a globally influential metropolis, Hong Kong is enhancing its status as an international hub for finance, shipping and trade. He added that he has high hopes that the collaboration between the cities will continue to develop
While achieving mutual benefits through cooperation, the two cities have also strengthened their bonds of friendship, Gong said.
The mayor pointed out that while Shanghai is building itself into a globally influential metropolis, Hong Kong is enhancing its status as an international hub for finance, shipping and trade. He added that he has high hopes that the collaboration between the cities will continue to develop.
At a meeting in Hong Kong on Thursday, the authorities of Hong Kong and Shanghai announced they would further enhance cooperation to boost the financial strength of both cities.
Both sides agreed to continue promoting the mutual market access programs, such as the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect, the Bond Connect and the Swap Connect, and exploring deeper cooperation between the two cities’ securities markets.
Representatives of the governments, financial regulators and exchanges of the two cities also discussed the latest developments in financial services in the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone, cooperation in the cross-boundary renminbi business, and financial products, as well as enhancing talent exchange.
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Established in 2003, the Hong Kong/Shanghai Co-operation Conference has held six plenary sessions so far. The fifth meeting was hosted in August 2021, during which Hong Kong and Shanghai agreed to jointly explore opportunities arising from the Belt and Road Initiative, and to foster closer industrial ties.
