The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and Europe (France) Economic and Trade Cooperation Conference, jointly hosted by the People's Government of Guangdong Province, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) Government, and the Macao SAR Government, was held in Paris, France on 24 May (Paris time). Governor of Guangdong Province Wang Weizhong, Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong SAR Government Paul Chan, and Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture Ao Ieong U, representing the Chief Executive of the Macao SAR, attended the event and delivered keynote speeches. The Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) organised Macao enterprises to attend the Conference along with the Macao SAR government delegation, taking this opportunity to present Macao-Hengqin business and investment environment to European investors and those from other countries and regions. The event attracted over 400 leaders of the political, commercial and industrial sectors from mainland China, France, other European countries and regions, as well as Hong Kong and Macao SARs, including the leaders from Fortune 500 companies.

During the Conference, three (3) projects were signed between Macao companies and French companies, involving European oak supply, department store operating rights, and smart water meter development. As reported by some of the Macao project-signing companies, France is a country rich in natural resources and is an overseas market worthy of expansion. Hence there is great potential for their future co-operation.

The Advantages of Macao in Exploring the Vast Markets of Mainland China and Portuguese-speaking Countries

During the Conference, IPIM President Vincent U and representatives of Macao enterprises introduced Macao’s strategic positioning as “One Centre, One Platform, One Base” and the “1+4” development strategy for the appropriately diversified economy to businesspeople from France and other European countries. At the same time, the opportunities of developing the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and the new pattern of Macao-Hengqin joint industrial development, that is, “Macao Platform + International Resources + Hengqin Space + Shared Results”, were introduced. In addition, the latest preferential policies for Macao issued by the Central Government were also shared with the participants in order to attract domestic and foreign enterprises to make good use of Macao’s business advantages, including the convenience of easy access to the vast markets of mainland China and Portuguese-speaking countries. During the Conference, the Department of Commerce of Guangdong Province, Invest Hong Kong and IPIM held a working meeting in Paris to discuss the joint promotion of the Greater Bay Area in accordance with the collaboration mechanism.

Since 2018, the governments of Guangdong, Hong Kong SAR and Macao SAR have jointly promoted the development of the Greater Bay Area in the overseas markets. Previously, the Economic and Trade Cooperation Conference was successfully held in Paris, France in 2018, Tokyo, Japan in 2019, and Munich, Germany in 2023. In the last edition in 2023, 32 co-operation projects were signed between the Greater Bay Area and European companies, which played a positive role in expanding the business market.