HONG KONG – Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu has encouraged Singaporean enterprises to make use of Hong Kong's advantages to tap into business opportunities in the Chinese mainland market.

The CE made the call while meeting Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong at the Government House on Monday.

Welcoming Gan's visit to Hong Kong with his high-level business delegation, Lee said that Hong Kong and Singapore have maintained close and friendly ties in bilateral trade.

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Singapore is Hong Kong's fourth-largest trading partner in the world and largest partner in merchandise trade among the member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, he pointed out.

The CE said he believes Hong Kong and Singapore can enhance collaboration in areas including trade, digital economy, financial services and green technologies.

He highlighted that Hong Kong has the distinctive advantage of enjoying the strong support of the motherland and being closely connected to the world under "one country, two systems", serving as an international financial, shipping, and trade center that benefits from opportunities brought about by key national development strategies, including the National 14th Five-Year Plan, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and the Belt and Road Initiative.

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He also thanked Singapore for its continuous support for Hong Kong's early accession to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, with a view to contributing to wider and deeper economic cooperation and integration in the region.

Deputy Financial Secretary Michael Wong Wai-lun and Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Algernon Yau Ying-wah also attended the meeting.