â€‹The Vice Premier of the State Council, Mr He Lifeng, attended and delivered a keynote speech at the Global Financial Leaders' Investment Summit today (November 19). Accompanying Vice Premier He at the Summit were the Acting Chief Executive, Mr Chan Kwok-ki; the Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan; and the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Christopher Hui.
      
     Vice Premier He said that President Xi Jinping and the Central Government care for and attach much importance to the development of Hong Kong. With the strong support of the Central Government, effective leadership of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, and joint efforts from all sectors of Hong Kong society, Hong Kong has achieved new accomplishments in economic and social development, and its financial system remains vibrant.
      
     He emphasised that building, consolidating and developing Hong Kong as an international financial centre is not only necessary for Hong Kong, but also important to the country. The Central Government has always positioned the development of Hong Kong as an international financial centre from a strategic perspective, and will continue to improve the policy system supporting the construction of Hong Kong as an international financial centre. As always, the Central Government will give full support and safeguards to Hong Kong in deepening financial reform and ensuring financial stability.
      
     Having just concluded the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings in Lima, Peru, and is currently en route back to Hong Kong, the Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, expressed his gratitude to Vice Premier He for attending and delivering a keynote speech at the Global Financial Leaders' Investment Summit in Hong Kong, which reflected the support and the great importance the country attaches to Hong Kong as an international financial centre.
      
     Noting that the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC Central Committee) adopting the Resolution of the CPC Central Committee on Further Deepening Reform Comprehensively to Advance Chinese Modernization, Mr Lee said that the Resolution calls on Hong Kong to fully harness the institutional strengths of "one country, two systems" while consolidating and enhancing its status as an international financial, shipping and trade centre, and supports Hong Kong in exerting a greater role in the country's opening up to the world. Hong Kong is an international centre ranking third globally and first in investment environment. The Summit, hosted in Hong Kong and entered its third edition, has gathered global financial leaders, underscoring international investors' recognition of both the country and Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government will ride on the Summit to tell the good stories of Hong Kong to global financial leaders and will continue to take forward the reforms in the financial sector, consolidating and enhancing Hong Kong's position as an international financial hub, and leveraging its unique advantages of enjoying strong national support while maintaining unparalleled connectivity with the world.
      
     Vice Premier He concluded his trip and left Hong Kong at noon today.

  

     The Deputy Financial Secretary, Mr Michael Wong, and the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Mr Kevin Yeung, held a press conference today announcing the calendar of mega events in Hong Kong (first half of 2025). The Executive Director of the Hong Kong Tourism Board, Mr Dane Cheng, also attended. Following are the remarks made at the press conference:
     â€‹
Reporter: Some events were being cancelled this year, such as the drone shows, which obviously disappointed tourists and affected Hong Kong's reputation. So for next year, what plans do you have to avoid these situations to happen again? And the second question is for Mr Cheng. Because you mentioned we can't just focus on the number of participants of an event, so what kind of focus will the Government and the Tourism Board put when organising events in 2025?

Deputy Financial Secretary: If I may take the question on drone shows. Some events are dependent on weather, so wherever you have those events is the same. I think you're referring to (the drone shows scheduled) around October 1. Even in Shenzhen, if I remember correctly, they did have some of the drone shows cancelled as well. For other shows, what they do is they have this called "破風版". They don't have an official English translation, and my translation will be "Braving the Winds" edition. What they do is they lower the density of the drones involved. For example, for some of the shows, the original plan was to have 2 000 drones in the show, and they lowered the density to around 400, so that allowed the show to continue to be carried out. We've learnt from them, so for some of the shows in the future, that would be one of the alternative options that we will be prepared for, including the shows to be organised by the Hong Kong Tourism Board.

Executive Director of the Hong Kong Tourism Board: First of all, any event, whether it is mega or not mega, we'd very much like to have the sufficient number of local participants as well as tourists. And for the tourists, it depends on whether they are from the Mainland or  from overseas. But of course, we would like to have events that would attract more people to attend. A lot of the times, the organisers would be speaking to us and they hope that the catchment area for the participants is not just for locals but for tourists as well. In that sense we will support them with the publicity and promotions outside of Hong Kong. 
 
     Secondly, we mentioned that the importance is to have these events that could positively promote Hong Kong, and  strategically promote Hong Kong as the Events Capital of Asia, so these are the considerations that we have. 
      
     But I think the Deputy Finance Secretary made a very good point. A lot of the times we have to be bold enough to attract events to come to Hong Kong for the first time. But we will be looking at, for example, their IP, and their past record. For example, this horse show from London, it is something that has been organised for the last 50 years, and it's the first time they have the event outside of London and to be held in Hong Kong, so these are the things that we proactively pursue.

Reporter: First, for Mr Wong, how do you evaluate the economic values and other benefits of the mega events held this year? Is it satisfying? And also the second question, as this year's Policy Address has proposed to attract more visitors from Middle East and Southeast Asian countries, so any plans or measures the Government is going to launch next year to increase the attractiveness of mega events to these two groups of tourists? 

Deputy Financial Secretary: Thank you for your first question. In terms of numbers, (for mega events), we are estimating that by the end of this year – we still have a few more weeks to go before year-end – the number of tourists will reach 2 million, which is about 17 per cent higher than the original estimate of about 1.7 million. In terms of value added, we are talking about $4.5 billion, and the total consumption, $7.5 billion. Both of them are higher than our original estimates. But as our Chief Executive said, "never the best, always the better". Of course, we would continue to work hard to push the figures higher. I think during the press conference, we have talked about the various impacts, and also we understand the difficulties and challenges our retail sector has been going through. Also, in my presentation, I did make the point that economic contribution is important, but it's not the only thing. There are also all the invisible or intangible benefits, like positioning Hong Kong positively in the world. Those are very important as well. And I do believe that the mega-event campaign we started last year has been playing a very positive role on this front.

Executive Director of the Hong Kong Tourism Board: I don't think we would want to particularly pursue any particular event that would attract, for example, visitors from Southeast Asia or the Middle East. 

     But the important thing is, as long as we bring in good-quality mega events in different sorts of categories and natures, in particular those with international appeal, then there will be visitors and local residents who would want to attend. I think that would be the key thing. 

     In my view, I'm quite optimistic because the whole air capacity will be increasing progressively towards the first quarter next year. By that time the Middle East and the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries would have sufficient air capacity flying into Hong Kong. That would be very useful and helpful for us to bring in more tourists.

Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism: May be I just add one more point. As outlined in the Chief Executive's Policy Address, to attract tourist from the Middle East and Southeast Asia, we will also be convincing the sector to provide more Halal friendly services. So that when the people come, they feel more at home and there will be services that suit their needs. That is also one strategy that we will be looking at.

(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the remarks.)

The following is issued on behalf of the Legislative Council Secretariat:

     The Legislative Council (LegCo) Panel on Transport and the Subcommittee on Policy Issues Relating to Strengthening and Promoting the Development of Kowloon East as the Second Central Business District conducted a joint visit to the MTR Kai Tak Station today (November 19) to learn about the crowd management measures and preparatory plans implemented in the station during large-scale events at the Kai Tak Sports Park (KTSP).

     Members first went to the concourse of Kai Tak Station to receive a briefing from representatives of the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL) on measures to cope with the large number of people dispersing from the event, including management of exits of the station, and the setting up of special signage to familiarise the public with the walking routes to and from the KTSP. Members were also briefed by representatives of the MTRCL on how crowd management measures and operational arrangements were planned according to the scale of testing events at the KTSP.

     Members then turned to the platform of Kai Tak Station to understand the operational arrangements for managing large crowds dispersing from the venue after mega events. These measures include increasing train frequency, enhancing real-time train schedule information and arranging special spare trains as needed to increase carrying capacity.

    During the visit, Members exchanged views with the MTRCL representatives on whether the passenger flow management measures and carrying capacity were sufficient to deal with the crowd which would actually appear, as well as the communication and co-ordination with government departments with a view to facilitating the smooth conduct of major events.

    At the invitation of the MTRCL, Members who participated in the visit were the Chairman of Subcommittee, Mr Tang Ka-piu, Subcommittee member Mr Yiu Pak-leung, and the Panel members Mr Chau Siu-chung, Mr Gary Zhang, and Mr Yang Wing-kit, who is also a member of the Subcommittee.

      

     â€‹The Deputy Financial Secretary, Mr Michael Wong, together with the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Mr Kevin Yeung, and the Executive Director of the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB), Mr Dane Cheng, announced the calendar of mega events in Hong Kong for the first half of 2025 today (November 19).
      
     Mr Wong said the Government will continue to take a proactive role in promoting and attracting different mega events to Hong Kong with an emphasis on quality and quantity. The calendar of mega events in Hong Kong for the first half of 2025 announced today includes information on 93 events that cover various areas. The Government strives for the early publication of the new calendar, with a view to allowing members of the public, tourists and related industries to learn about the mega events in Hong Kong, facilitating the early planning of visits to Hong Kong, or seizing business opportunities by designing and launching activities and products in collaboration with the mega events.
      
     Mega events will contribute to economic benefits for Hong Kong. Based on the current data, it is estimated that approximately 840 000 tourists would participate in the mega events in first half of 2025. Their spending is estimated to be about HK$3.3 billion, bringing a value add of about HK$1.8 billion to the Hong Kong economy.
      
     Mr Yeung said that in addition to the integrated development of culture, sports and tourism, the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau (CSTB) is also committed to promoting the development of industries in these three areas through mega events and assisting in driving a diversified economy. The CSTB aims to showcase Hong Kong's soft power and the charm of Hong Kong as an international metropolis to the world. So far in 2024, the CSTB has participated in and supported a number of culture, sports and tourism-related mega events by different means, including organisation of events by the CSTB and its departments and organisations, provision of financial support by various funding schemes of the CSTB, as well as co-ordination and facilitation of event arrangements. Looking ahead in the first half of 2025, Hong Kong will continue to welcome international and local mega events of culture, sports and tourism.
      
     Mr Cheng said the Mega Events Development and Advancement Division (MEDA) of the HKTB actively serves as the first point of contact for event organisers. Since its formation in March 2024, MEDA has handled inquiries from close to 100 events. The HKTB also proactively reaches out to local, Mainland and international event organisers, as well as major music and entertainment brands, to introduce MEDA's work and available support with a view to bringing potential mega events to Hong Kong, further solidifying Hong Kong's reputation as the "Events Capital of Asia".
      
     Regarding the updating of the calendar of mega events, at present the calendar, which covers the coming half year, is announced every half year. The CSTB will update the calendar of mega events more frequently by way of rolling updates, with a view to enabling the general public and tourists to access the latest information.
      
     The calendar of mega events in Hong Kong (first half of 2025) is in the Annex. The public can also browse it through the website for Brand Hong Kong (www.brandhk.gov.hk).

    

     The Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Algernon Yau, today (November 19) hosted a cocktail reception for about 200 guests including representatives of consulates, chambers of commerce and major trade associations, as well as members of relevant government boards and committees, to update them on the continuous efforts of the overseas Hong Kong Economic and Trade Offices (ETOs) and the Mainland Offices in promoting the strengths and opportunities of Hong Kong on all fronts.
 
     The reception was held during when the Heads of the 14 ETOs and five Mainland Offices (HETOs) return to Hong Kong for the annual meeting of HETOs.
 
     Speaking at the reception, Mr Yau said that following the pandemic, the ETOs and Mainland Offices have arranged or supported a large number of duty visits conducted by senior government officials in the past year to promote Hong Kong's unique advantages and vast opportunities for businesses and investments.
 
     He stressed that despite geopolitical tensions, Hong Kong's economic outlook remained optimistic, citing that the city regained the status as the world's freest economy among 165 economies in the latest Fraser Institute report. With the staunch support from the motherland, Hong Kong will continue to leverage its unique strengths and improve on its free and open business environment.
 
     Mr Yau briefed the guests on an array of initiatives announced in the 2024 Policy Address to spearhead strategies to develop and nurture high value-added industries, such as developing Hong Kong into a multinational supply chain management centre, creating a commodity trading ecosystem and developing an international gold trading centre. He also highlighted the recent policy breakthroughs to fortify Hong Kong's position as an ideal investment hub, such as liberalisation measures under the amended Agreement on Trade in Services under the framework of the Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement, and visa facilitation to enable convenient entry into the Mainland by non-Chinese permanent residents in Hong Kong.
 
     Mr Yau added that with the distinct advantages of enjoying strong support from the country while maintaining unparalleled connectivity with the global trading system, Hong Kong will continue to integrate into the overall development of the country, acting as the "super connector" and "super value-adder" for foreign investments to connect with the vast Mainland market, and capitalise on the opportunities brought by the Belt and Road Initiative and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area development.
 
     "We will also continue to proactively make efforts to explore possible enhancement to our ETO network. As announced earlier, we are working on setting up new offices in Kuala Lumpur and Riyadh to strengthen our ties with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the Middle East," he added.
 
     Emphasising collaboration, Mr Yau at the same time called for continuous support from business leaders to join hands with the ETOs in promoting Hong Kong to overseas counterparts.
 
     "In order to deepen our promotion work in telling the good stories of Hong Kong, the Government and the ETOs cannot do enough just on our own. We encourage our ETOs to collaborate with our business sectors as well as the chambers in Hong Kong to organise various activities in overseas countries to promote Hong Kong," he said.
 
     Also attending today's cocktail reception included members of the Executive Council and the Legislative Council, officials from the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) and the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the HKSAR, and representatives from the tourism, creative industries as well as performing arts groups.