Closer trade ties with HK on way under Asean link 

 
Key developments in the Thailand-Hong Kong economic cooperation in 2019 include the enactment of a free trade agreement, investment facilitation and cooperation on startups.
Yesterday, Hong Kong officially opened its first Economic and Trade Office in Thailand in an effort to boost trade and investment between the two economies. 
“Later today, Hong Kong will officially open its Economic and Trade Office right in Bangkok to further enhance its presence in Thailand,” Hong Kong’s Chief Executive Carrie Lam said yesterday at the Thailand-Hong Kong Strategic Partnership event.
“We are ready to go hand in hand with Thai startups, to spur ideas and research in both places,” she said.
Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak said: “The establishment of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office marks the beginning of a new level of cooperation between Thailand, Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area (GMA).”
The GMA is a new economic zone announced by China, covering cities in the province of Guangdong as well as Macau and Hong Kong. The Chinese government aims to make the GMA a key financial and innovation hub of China.
Somkid said: “With the Economic and Trade Office in place, investors from Hong Kong will definitely increase their investment in Thailand, whether it be in Thai startups or in the Eastern Economic Corridor.”
He said hailand can lead the Asean region, especially the CLMVT (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar Vietnam and Thailand) subregion, to greater connectivity with Hong Kong and mainland China.
The first area of economic cooperations between the Asean region and Hong Kong is in trade, where a Hong Kong-Asean free trade agreement (FTA) was signed back in November 2017, according to Lam.
“The Hong Kong-Asean FTA has yet to become active, as it needs official ratification from at least four Asean countries,” said Auramon Supthaweethum, director-general of the Department of Trade Negotiations (DTN).
Auramon said that Thailand, in leading the Asean region to increase connectivity with Hong Kong and the GMA, was the first country to submit its Hong Kong-Asean FTA ratification instruments, followed by Singapore.
“Thailand and Singapore have deposited their ratification instruments earlier this year, the majority of the remaining states are expected to complete their internal procedures over the next few months,” Lam said.
“With the FTA in place, I expect to see more bilateral trade and flows of investment between Hong Kong and Thailand,” she said. 
Auramon expects the two additional Asean countries to submit their ratification documents in the next few months and stated that the Hong Kong-Asean FTA should become active in the second quarter of this year. 
In 2018, the total trade value between Thailand and Hong Kong stood at US$15.473 billion, with Thai exports totalling $12.523 billion and $2.949 billion in imports, the Commerce Ministry said. With the prospects of the Hong Kong-Asean FTA, the DTN has set a trade target of $20 billion between Thailand and Hong Kong for 2019, according to Auramon. 
Apart from enjoying free trade, the Hong Kong-Asean FTA will also facilitate investment, allowing Thai entrepreneurs to hold all stakes in 77 different business categories in Hong Kong, including the finance and telecom sectors, she said. 
Hong Kong will also be stepping up its efforts to facilitate the growth of Thai startups in 2019. “For tech-startups and investors in Hong Kong , Thailand is the most important market in the Asean region as it’s digital economy is currently booming,” said Lee George Lam, chairman of Hong Kong Cyberport. 
The Hong Kong Cyberport is a business park in Hong Kong, aimed at promoting the growth of tech-startups. It currently has 1,269 tech companies, many of which are unicorns (startups that have a value above $1 billion), he claimed. 
“Thailand aims to develop its own Cyberport, using Hong Kong’s Cyberport as a model,” said Pichet Durongkaveroj, Minister of Digital Economy and Society.