Free-trade agreement ‘logical next step’ for Hong Kong and United Arab Emirates, city leader John Lee says
- Chief Executive John Lee tells forum in Dubai he is ‘keen to build ever stronger economic, trade and investment ties with the UAE’
- But UAE could take months to decide whether to begin formal discussions on matter with city counterparts, according to source
But the UAE government has yet to commence formal discussions with its Hong Kong counterparts over a possible agreement, the Post has learned.
Memorandums of understanding (MOUs), meanwhile, have been signed between the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation and its counterpart in the UAE, as well as between a local architectural firm, a home-grown tech start-up and an Abu Dhabi smart city operator.
Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said the two economies and their respective firms “have much to gain” from a free-trade agreement (FTA) while addressing a business forum in Dubai on Wednesday night. The UAE is already Hong Kong’s largest trading partner in the Middle East.
“An FTA between Hong Kong and the UAE, therefore, is the logical next step in our relations. I’m confident it would substantially boost trade and investment ties between us,” he told hundreds of businesspeople attending the gathering.
An official source told the Post the UAE government might take months to decide whether to enter formal negotiations with Hong Kong.
“I think it’s a matter of time. Both Hong Kong and the UAE, as some of the most open economies in the world, have endorsed the added certainty and communications that come with trade agreements,” the insider said.
