GBA briefs

Hong Kong: Road map to beef up SAR's insurance sector

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government unveiled a development road map for the local insurance sector on Monday, outlining measures to deepen connectivity between the Hong Kong and Chinese mainland insurance markets, and consolidate the city's status as a global risk management center and sophisticated insurance hub.

The plan said Hong Kong will set up insurance after-sales service centers at places like Guangzhou's Nansha and Shenzhen's Qianhai development zones in the near future.

The SAR government will also do its utmost to convince insurance groups that having their headquarters in Hong Kong is the optimal choice. A risk-based capital regime is expected to be in operation by 2024. It will render assistance to mainland and international insurers in a bid to attract more enterprises to the city.

Macao: University to get funding in nation's stem cell research

A study of the University of Macau is among various projects recently listed under the "Stem Cell Research and Organ Repair" category to be funded by the National Key Research and Development Program.

The project is the Macao Special Administrative Region's first research program to be listed by the national program. It will receive State funding of 30 million yuan ($4.29 million).

The research will help promote China's long-term and healthy development of the stem cell industry, and strengthen the nation's capability and international competitiveness in stem cell therapy.

Guangzhou: Financial leaders gather for 19th IFF annual meeting

Guangzhou hosted the 19th International Finance Forum annual meeting from Dec 2-4, with the theme "The Ever-Changing World: Reshaping Our Shared Future".

The event was attended by leaders of world organizations, including the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, as well as executives of leading global financial institutions and enterprises, and scholars.

Participants shared their insights on topics such as the international economic outlook, debt risks and prevention, climate investment and carbon pricing, the Belt and Road Initiative and the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva warned there is a 25-percent chance that global economic growth will drop below 2 percent next year.

Shenzhen: Matter Research Institute set up in Futian district

The City University of Hong Kong and Shenzhen's Futian district government signed a memorandum of understanding on Nov 29, announcing the establishment of the CityU Matter Research Institute (Futian) in the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone in Shenzhen.

The institute is expected to make full use of the high-quality resources of both cities, mainly in five scientific research fields — energy materials, biological materials, functional materials and chips, structural materials, and high-end instrument manufacturing.

Zhuhai: Service guideline revealed for HK, Macao youths

A service guideline for Hong Kong and Macao youth development in Zhuhai was issued at the 12th Macao-Zhuhai Cooperation and Development Forum held in Macao on Dec 3. The guideline is aimed at helping young talents from the two special administrative regions to better integrate into Zhuhai's community.

The guideline fine-tunes the instructions and practices on relevant policies and measures running the gamut from employment to entrepreneurship, from cultivating talent to education and life, housing and leisure. The policies are designed to encourage Hong Kong and Macao scientists and researchers to put their technology and knowledge into practice in Zhuhai.

Foshan: Trade team clinches deals worth $23.93 m

A Foshan trade delegation has ended a 10-day trip to Poland and Germany after sealing deals of more than 167 million yuan ($23.93 million) with European merchants. It was the first trade team led by a municipal government in Guangdong province to visit foreign countries with the aim of strengthening business ties since the coronavirus outbreak.

The 44-member delegation included entrepreneurs from the new energy, electric appliances and construction materials sectors. Wu Huiying, deputy director of the Foshan bureau of commerce, said the trip was to help Foshan companies showcase their products to foreign clients and expand markets.

Huizhou: Smart eco-zone takes shape with projects worth $39.62 b

Located in the southern part of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, a smart eco-district is taking shape in the Tonghu Lake area of Huizhou, and has attracted 141 projects valued at 276.5 billion yuan ($39.62 billion).

The project has been hailed as a milestone in Huizhou's efforts to prioritize and expedite the development of the Greater Bay Area, and in building a pilot demonstration area of socialism with Chinese characteristics in Shenzhen. With high expectations of the zone, Huizhou aims to make itself a hinterland for China-South Korea industrial cooperation, as well as a distinct cooperation platform in the Greater Bay Area.

Dongguan: Firm wins bid to produce World Cup mascot souvenirs

La'eeb — the mascot of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar — has drawn a great deal of interest among soccer fans around the world. The official souvenirs of La'eeb were produced in China's manufacturing powerhouse, Dongguan.

Dongguan's Cheche Cultural Development beat more than 30 international companies to clinch authorization to manufacture and globally distribute the official mascot and other products for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

The entire manufacturing process — starting from design, 3D modeling, proofing and production — was undertaken by the full-fledged industrial chain in Dongguan. The company made eight prototypes, based on FIFA's original sketch, to secure the production rights.

Zhongshan: Funding program released for high-tech startups

Zhongshan science and technology bureau has unveiled a funding program for high-tech startups' infrastructure establishment, geared to creating a sound innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem.

Platforms are to be created for science and technology business incubators, university science parks and industrial parks. Based on the Zhongshan government's evaluation, each eligible incubator teaming up with partners from the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions, Guangzhou or Shenzhen will get a subsidy of 30 percent of the investment, capped at 2 million yuan ($286,600).

Eligible industrial parks will be granted a maximum of 5 million yuan annually for their construction.

Jiangmen: Economic growth rate ranks second in Guangdong

Jiangmen's economic growth rate ranked second in Guangdong province in the first three quarters of this year. In the nine months of 2022, the city's GDP exceeded 266 billion yuan ($38.12 billion) — a year-on-year increase of 3.3 percent — according to the Jiangmen municipal statistics bureau.

The added value of the city's manufacturing industry rose 4.2 percent year-on-year. The advanced manufacturing sector accounted for more than half of the overall economic growth. The intelligent manufacturing equipment business surged 48.6 percent, the shipbuilding and marine engineering equipment sector was up 69.2 percent, and new energy equipment production climbed 13.6 percent.

Zhaoqing: Construction work starts on port terminal projects

Four public terminal projects at Zhaoqing Port broke ground on Nov 30.

Investments in the first phase of the projects reach 4.5 billion yuan ($644.82 million), and could exceed 6 billion yuan eventually.

As a major inland river port on the Chinese mainland, Zhaoqing Port is an important transportation hub and container port in the Pearl River Delta. It offers significant support for the city's economic development, particularly in the harbor industries.