Tag Archives: China

     The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Brussels (HKETO, Brussels) presented a Special Hong Kong Award to an Italian company at the 19th China Awards in Milan, Italy on December 4 (Milan time).

     The China Awards, organised by the Italy China Council Foundation (ICCF) annually, is one of the most influential business events in Italy. It recognises Italian companies that have grasped the opportunities in the Chinese market and vice versa, Chinese companies that have invested in Italy and engaged in strategic and innovative collaboration with Italian counterparts.

     Deputy Representative of HKETO, Brussels Miss Fiona Li, commended the recipient of the Special Hong Kong Award, Venchi. This Italian confectionery company has expedited its expansion in Asia, leveraging Hong Kong’s vibrant culinary landscape, strategic location and unmatched connectivity with Mainland China. “Its success in Hong Kong and in Asia speaks for itself that establishing a presence in Hong Kong is conducive to its market expansion. It is the testimony of the strengths of Hong Kong – our low and simple tax regime, free flow of capital, business-friendly environment, and advanced logistics and supply-chain management”, Miss Li said.

     The event offered an opportunity to put a quartet comprising of Hong Kong’s musicians in the spotlight before 300 executives and senior representatives of top Italian and Chinese companies. The quartet, which was brought to the event by HKETO, Brussels to help give Hong Kong talents international exposure and to showcase Hong Kong as an international cultural exchange hub, had Grace Chan, double bass player; Isaac Lam, pianist; Melody Lau, violinist; and Emily Chan, soprano. Grace Chan was selected to participate in the Rome Chamber Music Festival’s Young Artist Programme in June 2024.

     Miss Li also highlighted the latest measures in the Policy Address to the Italian audiences on enhancing Hong Kong’s status as an international financial, shipping and trade centre, including lowering the tariff on liquor. She elaborated that Hong Kong’s distinctive advantages including an independent judiciary, a free trade and investment regime, and an efficient and clean government are kept under the “one country, two systems” principle as she encouraged Italian companies and talents to come to Hong Kong. “Hong Kong is and will remain your prime gateway to China and your most preferred partner in Asia”, she added.

     The ICCF is the largest Italy-China business association in Italy that facilitates collaboration between Italian and Chinese companies. The ICCF organises the annual China Awards in partnership with the Italian Chamber of Commerce in China and with the support of the China Chamber of Commerce in Italy.

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Attention duty announcers, radio and TV stations: Yellow fire danger warning      The fire danger situation today (December 7) is yellow and the risk of fire is high. People are urged to prevent fires breaking out and hik… read more

     Three charities have been issued Public Subscription Permits to hold flag sales from 7am to 12.30pm today (December 7). They are, on Hong Kong Island, Helping Hand; in Kowloon, Hong Kong Kidney Foundation Limited; and in the New Territories, Hong Kong ABWE Social Services, a spokesman for the Social Welfare Department (SWD) said.
      
     Arrangements have been made with the charities to help people to distinguish among the three flag-selling activities.    
      
     Information on the three flag-selling organisations on December 7 is as follows:
 

Region	Name of organisation	Colour of collection bag	Colour of flag
Hong Kong Island	Helping Hand	Red	Red
Kowloon	Hong Kong Kidney Foundation Limited	Yellow	Gold
New Territories	Hong Kong ABWE Social Services	Orange	Light purple

 
     Details of the charitable fund-raising activities, including any updated information, covered by the issued Public Subscription Permits have been published on the GovHK website (www.gov.hk/en/theme/fundraising/search). Permits for flag days containing information on contact methods of the flag-selling organisations and the approved flag-selling activities have also been uploaded to the SWD’s website (www.swd.gov.hk/en/ngo/controlofc/flagdays) for reference. For enquiries, please call the SWD’s hotline at 2343 2255, or the designated hotline of the 1823 Call Centre at 3142 2678.
      
     In the case of suspected fraudulent flag day activities, people should not make any donation and should immediately report the matter to the Police, the spokesman added. read more

     â€‹The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, Berlin (HKETO Berlin) sponsored the 20th edition of the Filmasia Asian Film Festival (Filmasia), taking place from December 5 to 10 (Prague time) in Prague.
      
     The Director of HKETO Berlin, Ms Jenny Szeto, delivered her opening remarks before the screening of the opening film “Fly Me To The Moon”, highlighting Hong Kong’s dedication to promoting cultural exchanges through movies.
      
     “Hong Kong takes pride in its vibrant popular culture, which offers a unique window into our dynamic way of life and rich heritage. And that is why our Government places strong emphasis on promoting Hong Kong’s cultural footprint, particularly through supporting the growth and international reach of our film industry. We have, for instance, increased funding support and established a dedicated scheme to foster film collaborations between Europe and Hong Kong. We also actively encourage and facilitate the participation of Hong Kong filmmakers in international festivals like Filmasia. This not only elevates the global visibility of Hong Kong cinema, but also celebrates the exceptional creativity and talent of our filmmakers,” she said.
      
     Filmasia is held annually in the first week of December, and the theme this year is “Women of Asian Cinema”. Supported by HKETO Berlin, Sasha Chuk, the director of “Fly Me To The Moon”, was invited to join the Festival and sharing session with the audience before the opening screening. Meanwhile, director Heiward Mak will join the screening of her film “Fagara” on December 6 (Prague time).

     About HKETO Berlin

     HKETO Berlin is the official representative of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government in commercial relations and other economic and trade matters in the Czech Republic as well as Austria, Germany, Hungary, Poland, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia and Switzerland. 

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     A fire broke out at a shipyard on Shum Wan Road in Aberdeen at 4.11pm today (December 6). The fire was upgraded to No. 3 alarm at 4.45pm. The fire was surrounded at 7.15pm.      Firemen are now … read more