On October 9, the "Close Economic Partnership Arrangement" (CEPA) 2006 Service Consultancy Meeting was held in Hong Kong.  Hong Kong will strengthen the cooperation with the Mainland on intellectual property protection.  Under the framework of CEPA, a coordinating center for the protection of intellectual property will be established in Hong Kong, in order to safeguard the interests of Hong Kong businessmen.

Ever since its signing in 2003, CEPA has continuously been expanding for the development of Guangdong and Hong Kong, getting hold its advantages.  True, CEPA has enhanced the economic and trade cooperation between China's Mainland and Hong Kong, especially as there is a close and long-term relationship between Hong Kong and "Guangdong Province. By the end of June this year, there were 2,200 Hong Kong residents who registered in the mainland as individual industrial and commercial traders, and of them, eighty percent are settled in Guangdong Province with an investment amount exceeding RMB ninety million.  Through their efforts and cooperation for many years, a strong and inseparable economic and trade relationship has been established between Guangdong and Hong Kong. To date, Hong Kong is Guangdong's biggest trade partner, accounting for 21 percent of the total volume of Guangdong's foreign trade last year.  Hong Kong is Guangdong's biggest direct investment origin overseas.  By the end of last year, 70 percent of Guangdong's foreign-funded projects came from Hong Kong.  Guangdong's manufacturing industry and Hong Kong's garment industry are most welcome respectively in the world market.

In order to fill up the content for the convenience of trade investment under the CEPA, both the Mainland and Hong Kong will strengthen cooperation on intellectual property protection and establish a coordinating center for the protection of intellectual property, so as to safeguard the interests of the Hong Kong businessmen.

2006-10-16

2006-10-16