18 firms including Swiss gold giant to set up in Hong Kong
Hong Kong's Invest Hong Kong agency signed 18 key enterprises, including a Swiss gold-trading giant that will produce in the city. The firms are part of the seventh batch of key enterprise agreements, aiming to boost the gold trading ecosystem.
Invest Hong Kong, the city's investment promotion agency, held a signing ceremony on 22 October for 18 key enterprises, including Johnson & Johnson (Hong Kong), Rohto Pharmaceutical, Yum China and Dianjin International. The event marked the seventh batch of key enterprise agreements.
Speaking at the ceremony, Invest Hong Kong Director-General Matthew Cheng said the city's chief executive had mentioned in a recent policy address the goal of using gold as a starting point for developing a commodity trading ecosystem. Among the newly signed enterprises, Cheng said, is a Swiss gold-trading giant that has begun deploying plans to produce in Hong Kong. The company also aims to drive a gold trading ecosystem encompassing refining, storage and trading, he added.
Cheng also revealed that a Shenzhen-based gold enterprise will set up in Hong Kong. Both firms are internationally certified refineries, he noted. The director-general attributed the success of attracting these enterprises to promotion efforts by the chief executive, financial secretary and other officials during overseas trips, as well as the city's targeted industrial policies.
According to Cheng, there has been a significant change over the past year. Previously, when his team approached potential enterprises, especially overseas firms, they often declined to meet with Invest Hong Kong representatives or were not seriously interested in understanding development trends in Hong Kong or the Greater Bay Area. Now, he said, some of these high-potential enterprises have proactively contacted the agency.