Hong Kong inks 15 agreements with Shanghai to boost growth

The deals aim to spur cooperation in legal, cultural, tech, education and finance.

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam and Shanghai mayor Ying Yong have witnessed the signing of 15 cooperation agreements in the areas of legal services, education, trade and commerce, innovation and technology, culture and finance as the two territories deepen ties to spur growth on the back of brewing trade tensions between the US and China.

The deals aim to promote businesses within the cities, collaborate in cultural activities, open access to each other’s financial markets and forge an alliance between their universities.

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A “Hong Kong Week” would also be held in Shanghai in 2019 followed by a similar “Shanghai Week” in 2020.

“In this new context, both Hong Kong and Shanghai will complement each other and join hands to seize the opportunities available to strive for closer and deeper co-operation, with a view to serving the country's needs, contributing to the country's development and creating a win-win situation for all," CE Lam said in a statement.

CE Lam added that in the last five years, the number of Hong Kong investment projects in Shanghai have grown from 22,000 to 29,000 whilst the number of Shanghai companies listed in Hong Kong rose from around 80 to more than 110, reports SCMP.