HONG KONG - John Lee Ka-chiu, chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, on Monday met with members of a visiting delegation of overseas government officials to exchange views on deepening cooperation and issues of mutual concern.

The delegation, which is visiting Hong Kong from Dec 8 to 11, comprises high-profile government officials from 12 countries across Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Oceania. During the meeting, Lee introduced the advantages and development opportunities of Hong Kong to the members of the delegation.

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Lee 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.

As the world's freest economy, Hong Kong boasts a highly internationalized, market-oriented, and friendly business environment, making it an ideal place for companies to expand their global operations. Lee welcomed businesses worldwide to use Hong Kong as a platform to explore overseas and mainland markets, achieving mutual benefits.

Hong Kong has been expanding its global economic and trade networks and has signed 24 investment agreements covering 33 economies, as well as nine free trade agreements covering 21 economies to date, including the free trade agreement signed with Peru last month, Lee said.

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Lee looked forward to strengthening cooperation with governments of various countries in the future to help businesses explore more opportunities and promote cultural exchanges.