HONG KONG - The Commissioner's Office of the Chinese Foreign Ministry in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region on Saturday strongly denounced a so-called "updated Hong Kong Business Advisory" jointly released by the US Departments of State, Agriculture, Commerce, Homeland Security, and the Treasury.
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A spokesperson for the office deplored the so-called updated advisory, which blatantly calumniated Hong Kong's national security laws and slandered its business environment.
The Chinese central government firmly supports Hong Kong in maintaining its particular strengths, reinforcing its status as an international financial, shipping, and trade center, sustaining the common law system as well as a free, open, and regulated business environment, and expanding global connections, the spokesperson noted.
The spokesperson stressed that Hong Kong's national security laws have safeguarded its positive business environment.
The implementation of the national security law in Hong Kong and the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance has ensured Hong Kong's prosperity and stability and helped further enhance its world-class business environment that is market-oriented, law-based, and internationalized.
The so-called "updated Hong Kong Business Advisory", the latest of a series of such releases, is a repetition of the United States' customary trick of hampering Hong Kong's development by defaming its business environment, the spokesperson noted.
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The US trick is not only a futile attempt to scare off global investors from Hong Kong, but another smudge on the United States' credibility in the international community, the spokesperson said.
The Chinese side urges the United States to withdraw all groundless sanctions relevant to Hong Kong and stop meddling in Hong Kong affairs, which are China's internal affairs, in any form, the spokesperson said.
Misleading remarks rejected
The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government also on Saturday rejected misleading and untruthful remarks on Hong Kong's legal system and business environment jointly issued by several departments of the United States government, which attempted to create panic.
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The successful implementation of laws relevant to safeguarding national security in the HKSAR has brought about a stable and safe environment conducive to business and investment, said a spokesperson for the HKSAR government.
Hong Kong ranks fifth in global competitiveness this year, and its foreign direct investment inflow was the fourth largest in the world last year.