Foreign chambers back Hong Kong 5-year plan, urge progress on Northern Metropolis

Representatives of foreign business chambers who met Hong Kong’s leader have said the five-year plan provided clear policy priorities for businesses’ strategic planning, but called for more concrete timelines and visible progress on the Northern Metropolis project to attract investment.

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu held a briefing on Monday for consuls general and heads of foreign chambers of commerce, during which he stressed that Hong Kong’s five-year plan was not a planned economy. The session included representatives from the United States, United Kingdom, Australia and the European Union.

“[The five-year blueprint] is a planning process which combines government policy with market forces, allowing everybody to find the best way to achieve the target with the best results and allowing flexibility in the process, making adjustments when circumstances are beyond your control,” he said.

After being briefed on Hong Kong’s first five-year plan and the policy address unveiled last Wednesday, some chamber leaders said the road map provided policy certainty, allowing firms to align their own long-term strategic planning, which was often measured in three- to five-year intervals.