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HONG KONG WELCOMES UK INVESTMENT
WITH £29bn of investment scheduled up to 2015-16, Hong Kong is urging UK companies to get involved in its large- scale infrastructure projects. UK Trade & Investment recently organised a trade mission to Hong Kong for businesses to learn more about these opportunities. Five large infrastructure projects in Hong
Kong are on UK Trade & Investment’s priority list of the top 55 global projects identifi ed as likely areas of success for UK fi rms. These include the West Kowloon cultural district, the redevelopment of the old airport site at Kai Tak, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, rail opportunities and the Lok Ma Chau Loop. Other opportunities include the building of a third runway at Chek Lap Kok Airport.
NEXT STEPS
To fi nd out more about UK Trade & Investment’s High Value Opportunities programme, visit:
www.ukti.gov.uk/ export/howwehelp/item/
219720.html
Companies attending the UK Trade
& Investment trade mission included UK architecture and design fi rms, as well as suppliers to the construction industry which attended an infrastructure ‘mega projects’ briefi ng. Participating in the mission, Nick
Buckingham, managing director of Alumasc Construction Products, said: “The trade mission gave us a tremendous insight into the opportunities available to us in the Hong Kong market as well as in mainland China. The support and involvement of UK Trade & Investment and major decision makers in Hong Kong’s ‘mega projects’ gave the mission real value and will help us as we develop our growth strategy in this region.”
RUSSIA’S ‘SILICON VALLEY’ TARGETS UK
A RANGE of partnership possibilities for British fi rms in Russia were discussed at a roadshow organised by UK Trade & Investment and the UK Science and Innovation Network, attended by the Skolkovo Foundation, the agency charged with creating Moscow’s hi-tech research hub. Plans centre on a $6bn investment by the Russian
government to create a science park, dubbed Russia’s ‘Silicon Valley’, on Moscow’s outskirts. The Foundation is focusing on fi ve areas: space and telecoms, IT, nuclear, biomedical and energy effi ciency. The roadshow comes after
an agreement on scientifi c co- operation was signed between the UK and Russia. Lord Green, Minister of State for Trade and
BY THE NUMBERS: FINANCIAL AND PROFESSIONAL SERVICES 18%
The UK banking sector originates more cross-border bank lending than any other country – 18 per cent of the world total in June 2010
Source: TheCityUK springboard | 09 241
branches and subsidiaries of foreign banks were centred in London in March 2010, more than in any other capital worldwide
The UK foreign exchange market is the largest in the world, with an average daily turnover of
£1,821bn
Investment, said: “Russia’s future is high value and hi-tech. This event will showcase the unique opportunities in the country’s ‘Silicon Valley’.” UK goods exports to Russia
increased by 51 per cent in 2010 to £3.5bn and grew by 63 per cent to £2.1bn in the fi rst six months of 2011. Since 2001, UK-Russia trade has grown 21 per cent year on year.
OONAGH BLACKMAN WRITER AND BROADCASTER
The growth strategy outlined in the spring Budget relies on confi dence – confi dence to double exports in a decade, to make the UK a centre for aerodynamics, science and the creative industries. George Osborne set out the pillars to underpin the drive for growth as lower and simpler taxes, signifi cant deregulation and an eased planning regime for infrastructure projects. But will it be enough to get the UK on the fast track and create a can- do mood? There is true momentum in some sectors, with car production, the UK’s internet industry, high-end television production and video games fl ourishing, and some forecasters are convinced the tide is already turning. However, to drive the recovery with enterprise, innovation, investment and expansion, businesses must be in no doubt that there is a relentless focus on building that elusive ingredient. Confi dence.
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