The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Singapore (Singapore ETO) participated in a business networking luncheon held today (May 16) in Da Nang, Central Vietnam, as part of its continued efforts to promote Hong Kong throughout Vietnam from the north to the south.
 
     The luncheon in Da Nang, co-organised for the first time with the Hong Kong Business Association Vietnam (HKBAV), attracted around 60 Vietnamese business leaders and investors. The Singapore ETO's investment promotion team delivered a presentation on Hong Kong's latest investment climate and opportunities, as well as the city's unique position as a gateway to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and outlined the range of support services available to Vietnamese enterprises looking to expand into the region.
 
     In his opening remarks, the Director of the Singapore ETO, Mr Owin Fung, highlighted Vietnam's growing importance as a key economic and strategic partner of Hong Kong. The Singapore ETO's relentless engagement across various regions of Vietnam underlines its strong commitment to fostering bilateral collaboration through continued government-to-government dialogue, business exchanges, and people-to-people interactions.
 
     On the same day, Mr Fung paid a courtesy call on the Consul General of the People's Republic of China in Da Nang, Ms Dong Biyou. Mr Fung briefed Ms Dong on the Singapore ETO's latest outreach initiatives in Vietnam, and both sides exchanged views on how Hong Kong can serve as a gateway between Mainland China and Vietnam, particularly in the context of the 75th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries.
 
     In April and early May, the Singapore ETO conducted two other official visits to further promote Hong Kong and strengthen ties in northern and southern Vietnam. On May 10, Mr Fung attended and delivered remarks at the HKBAV Gala Dinner in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), which was attended by nearly 200 guests. He reiterated Hong Kong's distinctive advantages under the "one country, two systems" framework, particularly in light of the evolving global trade environment. Other guests included the Deputy Consul-General of the People's Republic of China in HCMC, Mr Xu Zhou, and the Chairman of the HKBAV, Mr Michael Chiu.
 
     On April 16, the Singapore ETO and Invest Hong Kong cohosted a business seminar and networking event titled "Hong Kong – The Launchpad for Your AI-Driven Success" in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam. Supported by the Vietnam Software & IT Services Association (VINASA), the event was attended by founders, owners, and senior executives from over 30 companies from sectors including artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and information and communications technology. Participants were briefed on Hong Kong's market opportunities, AI funding opportunities, tax incentives, and research and development support measures by Mr Fung and the investment promotion team through presentations and a sharing session.
 
     During the same Hanoi visit, Mr Fung also had separate meetings with the Deputy Director General of the International Market Development Department, Vietnam's Ministry of Industry and Trade, Mr To Ngoc Son, and the Acting Director General of the Northeast Asia Department, Vietnam's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr Do Nam Trung, on April 16 and 17 respectively. Both sides exchanged views on the regional economic and geopolitical outlook and explored opportunities to enhance collaboration on government and business levels. Mr Fung also sought Vietnam's continued support for Hong Kong's accession to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership.

                    

     The Secretary for Health, Professor Lo Chung-mau, chaired the first meeting of the Advisory Committee on Health and Medical Innovation Development (Advisory Committee) today (May 16), during which members shared their valuable insights on the establishment of the Hong Kong Centre for Medical Products Regulation (CMPR) and the Real-World Study and Application Centre (RWSAC).

     The Health Bureau (HHB) established the Steering Committee on Health and Medical Innovation Development (Steering Committee) last year to co-ordinate and advance the work related to health and medical innovation, with a view to taking forward the policy of developing Hong Kong into an international health and medical innovation hub as proposed in the Policy Address. The newly established Advisory Committee under the Steering Committee is responsible for providing professional advice and strategic recommendations on the related work to the Steering Committee. The Advisory Committee has received staunch support from the National Medical Products Administration, with the Director of the Department of Drug Registration, Mr Yang Ting, joining the Committee as the official representative of the national drug regulatory authority. Other members include experts from the healthcare, academic, scientific research, and industry sectors. Other members include experts from the healthcare, academic, research, and industry sectors.

     The Advisory Committee held its first meeting today, where members first received a briefing on the progress of the establishment of the CMPR. The Preparatory Office for the CMPR has been taking forward various measures, including examining the need for new legislation, mapping out the strategies to reform the regulatory regime of drugs and medical devices, and advancing plans for "primary evaluation" since its establishment in June last year. The objective is to put forward the timetable for establishing the CMPR and the roadmap towards the adoption of "primary evaluation" in the first half of this year.

     At the meeting, members also offered advice on the proposals for establishing the RWSAC. The RWSAC aims to enhance the access and application of health and medical databases, as well as strengthen collaboration between Hong Kong and the Mainland, particularly in integrating real-world data generated through the special measure of using Hong Kong-registered drugs and medical devices used in Hong Kong public hospitals in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, to achieve three major objectives: (1) accelerate the research and development (R&D), approval and market launch of innovative medical products; (2) leverage real-world data to support evidence-based decision-making; and (3) develop Hong Kong into a leading region and global hub for real-world studies. The Government strives to establish the RWSAC by the end of this year.

     Professor Lo said, "I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to all members of the Advisory Committee for offering invaluable and professional advice on the proposals and measures for health and medical innovation development at today's meeting. The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government will strenuously work in line with the national objective of further reforming the medical and healthcare system and take forward the establishment of the CMPR and the RWSAC by complementing technological innovation with institutional innovation. We will fully utilise the institutional advantages of 'one country, two systems' and Hong Kong's professional healthcare strengths to develop Hong Kong into an international health and medical innovation hub, thereby enabling patients to benefit from the most advanced diagnostic and treatment technologies and achieving the concept of bringing the benefits of good drugs and R&D to Hong Kong. At the same time, we aim to attract more local, Mainland and overseas pharmaceutical and medical device enterprises to conduct R&D and clinical trials in Hong Kong, thereby developing new quality productive forces in biomedicine and a new model for Hong Kong's health and medical innovation development, so as to make further contributions to the overall development of the nation."

     The membership of the Advisory Committee is as follows:

Chairman
————
Secretary for Health

Representative from national drug regulatory authority
————————————————————-
Mr Yang Ting  

Non-official members
————————–
Professor Isaiah Arkin
Professor Bian Zhaoxiang
Dr Benjamin Li Xiaoyi 
Professor Tony Mok Shu-kam
Professor Walter Seto Wai-kay
Professor David Shum Ho-keung
Professor Karl Tsim Wah-Keung
Mr Fred Tung
Ms Wu Shan

Official members
———————
Permanent Secretary for Health
Deputy Secretary for Health 3
Senior Advisor (Secretary for Health's Office)
Representative from the Department of Health
Representative from the Hospital Authority
Representative from the Innovation and Technology Commission
Representative from the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation

    

     Following is the speech by the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Algernon Yau, at the discussion session entitled "Prosperity through Sustainable Trade" at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting in Jeju, Korea, today (May 16):

     Thank you, Chair, and good morning, colleagues.

     Supply chains are the driving engines for today's global economy, yet they are also highly sensitive and vulnerable to external shocks, as we have witnessed during COVID-19 and in recent days.

     Hong Kong, China (HKC), as an international shipping and logistics hub, has been implementing various measures to support sustainable supply chains. Our Climate Action Plan 2050 steers four major decarbonisation strategies, namely, net-zero electricity generation, energy saving and green buildings, green transport and waste reduction. Increasing the zero-carbon energy supply through renewable energy development, popularising the use of electric commercial vehicles, enhancing the current cross-border electricity transmission infrastructure and developing a green maritime fuel bunkering centre are just a few examples of our efforts on this front. Furthermore, to assist the trade in seizing the business opportunities in green logistics, we have also commenced a study on the development of green and sustainable logistics.

     In December 2024, we launched the roadmap on sustainability disclosure in HKC, as a pathway for large publicly accountable entities to fully adopt, by 2028, the International Financial Reporting Standards – Sustainability Disclosure Standards (ISSB Standards), making HKC to be amongst the first jurisdictions to align its local requirements with the ISSB Standards.

     In parallel, enabling initiatives have been rolled out to equip micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) with the means to manage their environmental footprint and encourage market participants to improve sustainable business practices. Funding schemes and capacity building programmes have also been put in place to encourage the adoption of digital technologies by MSMEs to facilitate the digital transformation of supply chains.

     The issue of supply chains has always been an integral part of APEC discussions since 2009 when our predecessors endorsed the APEC Supply Chain Connectivity Framework Action Plan at the APEC Ministerial Meeting. HKC believes that APEC has a continued key role in facilitating our businesses in strengthening sustainable supply chains. APEC's role becomes even more important now than ever, when cross-border trade and investments and supply chains face uncertainty and unprecedented challenges.

     To this end, HKC appreciates Korea's efforts in organising an informative public-private forum on this important topic last week.

     Our collective goal of strengthening sustainable supply chains should never be a trade-off between sustainability and trade, but rather a synergy between the two. HKC is committed to working with all member economies to drive progress towards shared prosperity through sustainable trade.

     Thank you.

     The Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Algernon Yau, continued attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Ministers Responsible for Trade (MRT) Meeting in Jeju, Korea, today (May 16).
 
     Speaking at the session entitled "Prosperity through Sustainable Trade", Mr Yau said that supply chains are the driving engines for today's global economy, yet they are also highly sensitive and vulnerable to external shocks.
 
     He depicted that Hong Kong, as an international shipping and logistics hub, has been implementing various measures such as Hong Kong's Climate Action Plan 2050 and the roadmap on sustainability disclosure in Hong Kong to support sustainable supply chains.
 
     "In parallel, enabling initiatives have been rolled out to equip micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) with the means to manage their environmental footprint and encourage market participants to improve sustainable business practices. Funding schemes and capacity-building programmes have also been put in place to encourage the adoption of digital technologies by MSMEs to facilitate the digital transformation of supply chains," Mr Yau said.
 
     Mr Yau stressed that the issue of supply chains has always been an integral part of APEC discussions, and APEC's role becomes even more important now than ever, when cross-border trade and investments and supply chains face uncertainty and unprecedented challenges.
 
     Mr Yau said he believed that the collective goal of strengthening sustainable supply chains should never be a trade-off between sustainability and trade, but rather a synergy between the two. Hong Kong is committed to working with all member economies to drive progress towards shared prosperity through sustainable trade.
 
     On the sidelines of the MRT Meeting, Mr Yau held a bilateral meeting with State Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan Mr Ogushi Masaki to exchange views on various trade and economic issues.
 
     The two-day MRT Meeting concluded. Mr Yau will return to Hong Kong tomorrow morning (May 17).

    

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:

     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced today (May 16) that the Financial Secretary, on the advice of the Governance Sub-Committee of the Exchange Fund Advisory Committee, has approved the extension of Mr Howard Lee's appointment as Deputy Chief Executive for two years beyond the normal retirement age, effective October 2025. Mr Lee will continue to be responsible for reserves management, financial infrastructure and fintech development at the HKMA. He is also an Executive Director of the Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation Limited.