French Trade Minister Francois Loos says France looks forward to better links with Hong Kong

Hong Kong is the platform to the Chinese mainland for French companies, said the French Minister for Foreign Trade, Francois Loos, during a recent visit to the SAR.

Mr Loos said: "Hong Kong understands how the European culture and how Europe works. It also understands the China market. So, Hong Kong is an important base for tapping the big China market." 

With over 400 companies and 6,000 French people living in Hong Kong, Mr Loos added:  "We look forward to better links between Hong Kong and France." 
 
He said the small and medium sized companies (SMEs) in France are going international these days. "There is a change of generation from father to son among France's SMEs. There is a need to look towards Asia and the rest of the world and I believe a lot of SMEs attracted to China, will come here."

Hong Kong, he said, is a "possible future" for French companies.

"We are interested in how we can work together. Hong Kong has a high service economy and is totally open to trade. It is something we should know more about and learn lessons from it," said Mr Loos.

More details in webcast "Hong Kong as platform for tapping China"