First Major Hong Kong Business Mission in Kazakhstan

Five-Day Mission Includes Stops in Almaty and Astana

Hong Kong, May 20, 2013 – (ACN Newswire) – Some 30 companies and 36 businesspeople from Hong Kong are in Kazakhstan looking for trade, investment and partnership opportunities with Kazakhstan companies.

The five-day business mission, which continues through 24 May, was organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC). The mission is supported by the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce and the Kazakhstan Consulate to Hong Kong and Macao SAR.

China Opportunities

A networking seminar, “Hong Kong – Helping Manage Opportunities and Challenges in China,” was held today in Almaty to encourage business cooperation between Kazakhstan and Hong Kong companies. More than 120 Kazakhstan business leaders attended the seminar, luncheon and Q&A session. Seminar speakers were: Grigori Marchenko, Governor of the National Bank of Kazakhstan, Zhumabek Zhanykulov, Chairman of the KAZKA Association, Raymond Yip, Assistant Executive Director of the HKTDC, Neville Shroff, Chairman of the Europe Committee, Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce, and Sergio Men, Vice Chairman of the Europe Committee, Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce.

Trade Promise

“This is the first major business mission Hong Kong has ever organised to your country,” HKTDC Assistant Executive Director Raymond Yip told the seminar participants. He said that they were in Kazakhstan “to see, first-hand, the remarkable promise of Kazakhstan. Here to expand trade between our two economies.”

Direct Air Services a Boon

Mr Yip noted that the 2011 launching of direct cargo services and passenger flights between Almaty and Hong Kong, on Air Astana, had been “a boon to trade” between the two economies.

Targeting Young Consumers

The Hong Kong mission counts members from a wide variety of manufacturing industries, including electronics and consumer appliances, gifts, toys and baby products, watches, clothing and auto parts. “They produce the quality, stylish, value-for-money products that Kazakhstan’s young and expanding consumer class are looking for,” said Mr Yip. He added that a number of financial and professional services professionals were also among the mission delegates.

One-to-one business-matching meetings were arranged between the Hong Kong mission members and company leaders from Kazakhstan.

Astana Economic Forum Visit

The Hong Kong mission will attend the sixth Astana Economic Forum in Astana on 22 May. There, Mr Yip will speak at the forum’s Eurasian Business Congress under the theme of Kazakhstan’s imminent accession to the World Trade Organization.

Another business-matching event will be arranged with the KAZKA Association, 23 May, in Astana.

Global Trade Leader

Hong Kong has been a member of the WTO since 1995. It is the world’s ninth-largest trading economy and the 11th largest exporter of commercial services.

About HKTDC

A statutory body established in 1966, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) is the international marketing arm for Hong Kong-based traders, manufacturers and service providers. With more than 40 global offices, including 11 on the Chinese mainland, the HKTDC promotes Hong Kong as a platform for doing business with China and throughout Asia. The HKTDC also organises trade fairs and business missions to connect companies with opportunities in Hong Kong and on the mainland, while providing information via trade publications, research reports and online. For more information, please visit:www.hktdc.com . Follow us on Google+, Twitter @hktdc, LinkedIn.

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Contact:

HKTDC
Corporate Communication Department
Joe Kainz
Tel: +852 2584 4216
Email: joe.kainz@hktdc.org