Hong Kong Celebrates Year of Snake with Gala Dinners in Riyadh and Dubai, Strengthening Ties in the Middle East.

2025-02-27 22:50 Last Updated At：22:58

Dubai ETO greets Year of Snake with gala dinners in Riyadh and Dubai

The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Dubai (Dubai ETO), in collaboration with the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC), hosted gala dinners in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on February 24 (Riyadh time) and in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on February 25 (Dubai time) to celebrate the Year of Snake with Saudi and UAE communities, and promote Hong Kong as well as its unique advantages and culture to locals from various sectors.

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Dubai ETO greets Year of Snake with gala dinners in Riyadh and Dubai Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

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Dubai ETO greets Year of Snake with gala dinners in Riyadh and Dubai Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

A total of over 450 guests from the government, business and cultural sectors as well as the local Hong Kong community attended the two gala dinners. Among them were the Minister of State for Foreign Trade of the UAE, Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, the Consul-General of the People's Republic of China in Dubai, Ms Ou Boqian, and the Chairman of the Saudi Chinese Business Council, Mr Mohammed Al Ajlan.

In his welcoming remarks to the guests, the Director-General of the Dubai ETO, Mr Damian Lee, highlighted the closer-than-ever relations and booming exchanges between Hong Kong and the Middle East region, marked by robust and active trade and economic co-operation as well as deepening collaboration in tourism, culture, education and many areas, since the establishment of the Dubai ETO more than three years ago and successive visits to Gulf countries by the Chief Executive and various Principal Officials.

Mr Lee also shared with guests how Hong Kong's distinctive advantages of having strong support of the country while maintaining unparalleled connectivity with the world render the city her role as a bridge linking the Mainland China and the rest of the world. He encouraged local business operators to make good use of Hong Kong's measures dovetailing with national development strategies to expand their business in Hong Kong.

"Like the virtuous snake in the Chinese zodiac, Hong Kong demonstrated her wisdom, flexibility and resilience amidst global uncertainties: in 2024, Hong Kong remained the world's freest economy and the third-largest global financial centre with a record number of 10 000 non-local firms, a 10 per cent increase on the previous year and a testament to the abundant confidence of people from around the world. Hong Kong also launched the New Capital Investment Entrant Scheme last year, further enhancing our attractiveness to foreign capital and talents. In the Year of Snake ahead, Hong Kong and the Middle East will definitely build upon the strong foundation of our relationship for further collaborations."

The Dubai ETO also invited Legislative Council Member and Associate Vice-President of Lingnan University, Professor Lau Chi-pang, to deliver a keynote presentation, on Hong Kong's rich intangible cultural heritage, as guests marvelled at the diversity, openness and the unique mix of Eastern and Western cultures of Hong Kong. During the dinners, representatives from Invest Hong Kong and HKTDC also shared respectively Hong Kong's promising investment opportunities and the upcoming trade fairs and activities in Hong Kong, and encouraged local businesses to invest and join fairs in Hong Kong.

The events also featured cultural performances, including the ancient Chinese theatrical art form from Sichuan opera – face-changing, as well as fascinating and interactive magic shows with Hong Kong elements by Louis Yan, an internationally renowned champion magician from Hong Kong who has won the Merlin Award, also known as the "Oscars" among professional magicians. The performances received enthusiastic applause from the audience who were deeply impressed by the beauty of the traditional Chinese culture and the authentic local culture of Hong Kong.

Financial Secretary Paul Chan Highlights Hong Kong's Role in Xi'an's Aerospace Industry Development

FS concludes visit to Xi'an (with photos/video)

The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, today (June 27) concluded the final day of his visit to Xi'an.

Mr Chan attended the First Western Commercial Space Conference this morning. In his speech, he said that Xi'an, with its strong scientific research capabilities, complete industrial chain, and deep accumulation in technology and talent pipelines, possesses unique advantages in depth in the aerospace industry. The related industries have progressed from being strong in supporting capabilities to becoming strong overall. He pointed out that the local industry has established an efficient and collaborative industrial system in areas such as rocket engines, satellite payloads, laser communications, precision measurement and control equipment, and new materials, significantly improving industry efficiency, lowering costs and accelerating technological iteration.

He noted that for commercial space to form a complete closed loop, it still needs to address the key issues of being able to secure financing, sell far, and proceed steadily, including connecting with international capital markets, expanding global customer networks, and aligning with cross-boundary rules and standards.

Mr Chan pointed out that Hong Kong can serve as an interface connecting the western region's aerospace industry with international markets from three dimensions: capital, research and market. In terms of capital, Hong Kong has a deep and broad pool of international capital and a global investor network, a mature offshore renminbi market, and an end-to-end fundraising and financing ecosystem, including patient capital that invests in small, early-stage, long-term and hard technology projects. These can help technology enterprises raise funds and complete valuation, pricing and cross-boundary mergers and acquisitions under rules familiar to international markets. In terms of research, Hong Kong's universities can collaborate with Xi'an's institutions on research into key technologies, promote the transformation of research outcomes, connect with international networks and attract high-end talent. In terms of market, Hong Kong can, with its common law system and internationally aligned intellectual property protection regime, assist enterprises in going global, expanding into international markets, converting standards and validating products.

He emphasised that Hong Kong has already incorporated commercial space into its industrial planning, including establishing the Space Robotics and Energy Centre, supporting the Chang'e-8 mission, and promoting local satellite projects and related investment. As commercial space enters the scaled development stage "fromone to N", co-ordination among the industrial chain, capital and markets is particularly crucial. Hong Kong will leverage its openness, internationalisation and financial advantages under the "one country, two systems" framework to empower the accelerated development of the western region's aerospace industry and support the development of the country's aerospace cause.

Mr Chan met with the Chairman of the Shaanxi Provincial Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, Mr Xu Xinrong, at noon. He concluded his visit programme in Xi'an in the afternoon and departed for Hong Kong.

Hong Kong Celebrates Year of Snake with Gala Dinners in Riyadh and Dubai, Strengthening Ties in the Middle East.

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