Two- way investment on the rise between cities
Beijing and Hong Kong have forged closer ties with increasing two- way investment.
Government data show that since 2013, the accumulative direct investment from Hong Kong to Beijing amounted $ 78.4 billion, accounting for roughly 70 percent of the total paid- in cross- boundary investment in Beijing.
During the same period, Beijing’s direct investment in Hong Kong totaled $ 30 billion, approximately half of the capital’s outbound crossboundary investment.
The two cities have established a strong cooperative relationship. Especially after the Belt and Road Initiative was proposed in 2013, the cities have leveraged their industrial resources and advantages to expand their collaboration and exchanges, said Wang Wenjie, deputy secretarygeneral of the Beijing municipal government, at the Beijing- Hong Kong Economic Cooperation Symposium.
Out of health concerns amid the COVID- 19 pandemic, the event was held in Beijing and Hong Kong concurrently, both online and offline, on Nov 19- 20.
The Beijing Commission of Development and Reform has joined hands with InvestHK, a government agency dedicated to promoting investment in the special administrative region, to set up a business promotion mechanism.
Under the cooperation framework, a group of 150 Beijing- based companies that are interested in investing in Hong Kong have been briefed about the special administrative region’s policy environment this year.
The State- owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of Beijing also called on Beijing businesses that have a presence in Hong Kong to attend the third Belt and Road Summit, scheduled to be held on Monday and Tuesday in Hong Kong, in a bid to increase cooperation in financing and the digital economy.
Dai Ying, an official with the commission, said that for Beijing, Hong Kong has become the source of the largest amount of direct investment and main investment destination for funds from the capital city, as well as the mainland’s No 1 crossboundary financing platform.
Government data show Beijingbased companies have invested in 550 projects in Hong Kong since 2008, accounting for 35 percent of their total outbound cross- boundary investment.
They have issued securities worth $ 23.9 billion in Hong Kong, 73 percent of the total securities they have issued in capital markets outside the Chinese mainland.
More than 60 companies from Zhongguancun Science Park, a high- tech business hub in Beijing, are publicly traded on Hong Kong Stock Exchange, valued at 2.98 trillion yuan ($ 453.29 billion) in total.
Zhongguancun has co- established 40 labs and research centers in countries and regions participating in the Belt and Road Initiative.
Wang said he expects closer cooperation between Beijing and Hong Kong, turning the two cities’ strengths in technology into mutual development benefits and promoting the pairing up of Zhongguancun Science Park and Hong Kong Science & Technology Park in key technological programs related to the Belt and Road.
Beijing and Hong Kong will continue their pragmatic collaboration and offer businesses from both sides information sharing, legal consultancy and risk assessment services.
The construction of the “Digital Silk Road”, focusing on the application of 5G technology, cloud computing, artificial intelligence, biopharmaceuticals and smart cities, is another highlight of the cities’ cooperation, Dai said.
Beijing and Hong Kong will encourage higher education institutions, research centers and companies in both cities to conduct joint research and development in these areas, as well as increase cooperation in international technological innovation.
The cities will also support the development of digital trade, such as cross- border e- commerce, and create a pioneering area for global digital economic development, she noted.
“We will encourage industry leaders in environmental businesses to expand overseas, especially in the sectors of technological consultancy, equipment manufacturing, and project construction and operation, in a bid to help destination countries improve their environmental management capacities,” Dai said.
She added that Beijing and Hong Kong will strengthen cooperation in green finance, helping businesses from the two cities to set up green equity investment funds as well as eco- friendly tech incubators designed for the Belt and Road markets.