Ties That Bind - Bay Area Council Economic Institute

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Ties That Bind
Cyberport information technology cluster/incubator facility, a
Design Centre and its related Innovation Centre cluster/incubator.
ITC has so far opened five R&D centers—of nine
planned—in information/communications, textiles and clothing,
nanotechnology and advanced materials, logistics and supply
chain management, and automotive parts and accessories.
Commissioner of Innovation and Technology Anthony Wong
told an October 2005 Hong Kong/Guangdong trade and investment
conference in San Francisco that the government’s
strategy is to build a “service platform” in Hong Kong that will,
utilizing the benefits under CEPA, provide technology and design
support to the basic manufacturing taking place across the
border in the Pearl River Delta’s 18,000 factories, employing
some 12 million workers. A joint mainland/Hong Kong committee
guides the ITC in tailoring its facilities and programs to the
needs of Southern China manufacturers.
Even as its status as the indispensable gateway to China as
dimmed, Hong Kong continues to serve as a major financial
services hub for China and the larger Asia Pacific region, with
the Hong Kong Stock Exchange playing a particularly important
role in Asian and Chinese capital markets. Apart from the particular
access that it provides to the growing industrial cluster in
the Pearl River Delta, Hong Kong also remains a significant
regional base for overseas companies wishing to establish a
China presence but mitigate the risks still associated with doing
business on the mainland.
Hong Kong-SV.com was established by a group of Hong Kong expatriates in Silicon Valley,
with support from the Hong Kong government. Like Monte Jade and Hua Yuan, it is specifically
intended to maintain open channels of communication between Hong Kong business and government
leaders and Hong Kong-born Silicon Valley entrepreneurs. The objective is to highlight
tech development activities and business opportunities in Silicon Valley and Hong Kong, and
facilitate networking and collaboration.
Monte Jade, Hua Yuan and Hong Kong-SV.com have branches or chapters in their home countries,
but so too, now, do some of the specialized professional organizations, as collaboration
within and among industry sectors and countries has grown. Even more interesting, organizations
that may have started out with a Taiwan or PRC focus have opened or are considering
branch chapters on both sides of the Taiwan Straits. For example, the Chinese-American Semiconductor
Professionals Association (CASPA) now lists Pearl River Delta, Shanghai, Taiwan/Hsinchu
and Singapore chapters.