Hong Kong prepares for the worst as city’s 3 trade offices in US may close
‘We will work harder to extend our international trade network,’ commerce chief Algernon Yau says
Hong Kong has prepared for the worst as the United States may shut down the city’s three trade offices in the country, the commerce minister has said, indicating that authorities will restructure their overseas set-up amid escalating US-China tensions.
Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Algernon Yau Ying-wah also said on Friday that Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu would lead a delegation with mainland Chinese companies to the Middle East next month to expand Hong Kong’s international trade network.
Yau made the remarks during a special Legislative Council Finance Committee meeting, following US President Donald Trump’s latest move to further raise tariffs on small parcels sent to his country from the mainland and Hong Kong to 120 per cent from 90 per cent.
“In the overall planning of our overseas trade offices, we’ll have a new plan to restructure our set-up in these countries or regions. We’ve done some preparation work but we cannot divulge the details at this stage,” Yau said.
“About whether the US will close Hong Kong’s three trade offices, we have prepared for the worst as to how we should redeploy our resources to respond to this happening.”