AustCham News March 2019 - Issue 207

香港澳洲商會

The Australian Chamber of Commerce Hong Kong

austcham news • Issue 207 | MAR 2019 10 Business Costs Eased in Budget 12 What Next for the Global Economy?

16 AustCham Briefs Shadow Ministers 22 International Women's Day Great Debate

Drilling Down on the GBA Development Plan Where Business, People and Ideas Connect

www.austcham.com.hk

Save the Date Tickets for the May 28 Hong Kong Gala Awards Dinner will go on sale in the coming weeks.

Check our website www.austcham.com.hk for updates and registration.

2019 AustCham Westpac Australia-China Business Awards Gala Dinner 28 May 2018 | 6:30pm Grand Ballroom, Grand Hyatt Hong Kong, 1 Harbour Road, Wan Chai

Sponsorship Opportunities The 2019 AustCham Westpac Australia-China Business Awards Program provides the ideal platform to showcase your company’s brand, products or services. For more information, please contact Jessica Meyers, Business Development Manager at AustCham Hong Kong at Jessica.meyers@austcham.com.hk.

PRINCIPAL SPONSOR

Westpac has been the official key sponsor of the ACBAs since 2009. Westpac has operated in Asia for over 40 years and was the first Australian bank into China. In addition to its Asian regional headquarters in Singapore, Westpac has branches in Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Mumbai and a representative office in Jakarta. Westpac’s goal in China is to both support Australian and New Zealand customers in the region, as well as provide a gateway for Chinese firms and individuals with interests in Australia and New Zealand.

Visit: www.westpac.hk or www.westpacbank.com.cn

Chairman's Column

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he recently released Greater Bay Area Development Plan maps out a comprehensive framework for Hong Kong as part of the Greater Bay Area (GBA) as an international centre for finance, transportation, logistics, asset management, and more. We are delighted to see many of the recommendations featured in our GBA position paper published last year are addressed in the Development Plan, indicating the respective governments in the GBA are receptive to the international business community’s ideas. We have several features on the GBA in this issue.

In celebration of International Women’s Day, the Women in Business Network (WIBN) hosted their annual IWD Great Debate at Colliers International which marked another very successful and entertaining event with the two teams debating the motion, ‘Men Divide, Women Unite’. You can find out which side prevailed in this issue. This year’s official theme of #BalanceforBetter also encourages us to drive towards greater gender balance and diversity.

The Chamber is committed to fostering an organisational culture of diversity.

We truly believe that greater diversity brings a range of perspectives and insights which lead to better decision-making. A diverse board is better positioned to thrive in today’s global economy and, as such, I am pleased to see that women now comprise 35% of AustCham’s Board of Directors. It is also a more ethnically diverse Board which in many ways reflects the multicultural nature of both Hong Kong and Australia. As many of you may know, last year we welcomed to the Board the Chair of our Young Executive committee Alex Oxford who will provide a valuable link with our younger members as well as offer deep fintech skills.

austcham news issue 207 Cover Story

Leveraging Hong Kong’s Financial Services Expertise

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Delegation Lifts Lid on GBA Policy Blueprint

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Hong Kong Focus 10 Business Costs Eased in Budget

Australia Focus 12 What Next for the Global Economy?

Feature Cybersecurity – Are You Prepared?

Yours sincerely,

Qantas C sleep banner ad 195x55mm hires.pdf 1 4/8/2017 15:10:04

Andrew Macintosh chairman@austcham.com.hk

Making an Impact 16 AustCham Briefs Shadow Ministers Industry Insight 17 Mentor Programme International Women’s day

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Committees in Action 22 News 24

I am now pleased to welcome Simone Wheeler as a Board Director of AustCham, who was recently appointed to the Board following a process run by the Chamber’s nomination committee. Simone is Chair of our Women in Business Network and has been heavily engaged in advancing women in business and driving gender diversity in the workplace.

Finally, our annual Rugby Sevens Lunch is back again this year at the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong on Thursday, 4 April. Tables are selling fast for this highly sought-after event, so we encourage you to book now. We are grateful to our title sponsor Commonwealth Bank of Australia for their fantastic support of one of our most popular events.

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New Members

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Corporate Profile

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On the Scene AFL in Asia

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austcham news Online version

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Chamber Chatter

What’s Trending

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s we go to press, our AustCham community mourns with our New Zealand friends following the Christchurch tragedy. It is incomprehensible that such violence could be meted out on innocent people in such a beautiful, such a familiar part of the world – and a city still recovering from the devasting earthquake. On your behalf, we have sent a message of condolence to the New Zealand Consul General and to our friends at the New Zealand Chamber of Commerce.

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We heard at the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) Annual Corporate Governance Summit in Sydney that increasingly, the community expects business to step up and to weigh in on issues which go beyond the traditional commercial remit. We saw this during the same sex marriage debate; and we see it happening in Australia and elsewhere on the climate change debate.

The Hon Julie Bishop spoke about this need to rebuild trust in political leadership during her recent speech to the Chamber. It is heartening to see the business community respond at times such as these, when we all need to come together from all walks of life to stand against such acts which seek to drive us apart.

Business can act as a unifying and rallying voice.

The AICD Corporate Governance Summit “Rising to the Moment” held in Sydney earlier this month was timely in the wake of the findings of the Royal Commission into Financial Services. Much of the discussion centred around an honest and clear-eyed examination of what went wrong in the big end of town and how it could be prevented.

Culture, culture and culture – often dismissed as “the soft” side of business – is now clearly front and centre. This was reinforced by Commissioner Hayne and by the expert speakers and commentators who addressed the 1,500 attendees at the summit. One comment resonated throughout the two days – as board directors and senior leaders, culture is often not determined by what you say, or even by what you do but always by what you walk past.

The summit drilled down into ethics and accountability and placed a particularly sharp focus on aligning an organisation. The question of balancing the interests of the shareholder with the interest of the customer continues to be a major conversation in corporate Australia arising from the Royal Commission.

These important issues will be discussed during an upcoming event with speakers from King & Wood Malleson and KPMG as we do a deep dive into the impacts of the Royal Commission in Australia and beyond. Hope you can join us.

Jacinta Reddan, Chief Executive, AustCham

AustCham Platinum Patrons

March 2019

Published By: The Australian Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong Room 301-302, 3/F, Lucky Building 39 Wellington Street, Central, Hong Kong Tel: +852 2522 5054 Email: austcham@austcham.com.hk Editorial Committee: James Kelly Jacinta Reddan Advertising: Email: advertising@austcham.com.hk

Where Business, People and Ideas Connect The Australian Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong is Australia's largest international chamber with about 1,400 members representing about 500 Australian and Hong Kong based companies.

It's the largest Australian business grouping outside the country and the second largest of 28 International Chambers of Commerce in Hong Kong. The AustCham mission is: To promote & represent business & values while enabling members to connect, engage & grow bilateral relationships.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the Australian Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, its members or officers.

The Australian Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong takes no responsibility for the contents of any article or advertisement, makes no representation as to its accuracy or completeness, and expressly disclaims any liability for any loss however arising from or in reliance upon the whole or any part of this publication.

Copyright © 2019 The Australian Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong

Printed on environmentally-friendly paper

Cover Story

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Greater Bay Area: Leveraging Hong Kong’s Financial Services Expertise The Greater Bay Area (GBA) represents a key strategic component of China’s national development blueprint, with the aim of promoting close cooperation between Hong Kong, Macau and nine cities in Guangdong Province to create a globally competitive and world-class city cluster. AustCham’s Greater Bay Area committee highlights the opportunities for financial services.

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n February, China’s central government authorities issued the ‘Outline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area’ (Development Plan), which lays a solid foundation for this ambitious goal. It aims to form a framework for an international first-class city cluster by 2022, leading to a more interconnected Pearl River Delta region.

The Development Plan identifies Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hong Kong and Macau as the four ‘core cities’ to drive the GBA’s development, with Hong Kong highlighted as an international centre for finance, transportation, logistics and asset management, as well a global offshore RMB business hub.

where, with the support from respective administrations in the GBA, could propel the industry’s growth.

Interestingly, a number of recommendations featured in the report are addressed in the Development Plan, indicating that the respective governments in the GBA are receptive to the international business community’s ideas (see Appendix below for a more detailed comparison).

…a major step towards facilitating the free flow of capital/people in the region, and we look forward to further updates as to how this will be implemented.

A hub for banks, asset managers, hedge funds, private equity and venture capital firms – and boasting an experienced and diverse talent pool – Hong Kong has a significant opportunity to leverage these advantages in the GBA.

Financing innovation and technology

In a recent joint report by KPMG China and AustCham, we presented views from Hong Kong’s international business community on how to leverage the city’s strengths and competitive advantages to deliver mutually beneficial growth across the GBA. Recognising the important role that Hong Kong plays as a global financial centre, the international business community identified a number of significant opportunities

Our report highlighted the international business community recommendations that Hong Kong should play a key role in helping the GBA develop as a venture capital investment and financing hub, creating the funding ecosystem is essential to fostering innovation and entrepreneurship. Hong Kong should also leverage its global financial services expertise by strengthening collaboration with industry to commercialise cont P.6

Cover Story cont from P.5

in the monitoring of financial institutions and analysis of cross-boundary capital flows. One way this could be achieved to enable financial institutions to operate broadly across the region – as put forward by Hong Kong’s international business community – is through the introduction of a GBA licence for financial institutions, supported by the respective regulators.

This could provide certain advantages to foreign banks located in any of the GBA’s 11 cities; for example the ability to deal with cross-border RMB banking services.

6 and enable global growth, with priority areas in data-driven capabilities like artificial intelligence and robotics.

This is in line with the Development Plan, which seeks to support the engagement of Hong Kong’s private equity funds in the financing of innovation and technology enterprises in the GBA and develop Hong Kong into a financing centre for high-tech industries.

In addition, to promote the innovative development and opening up of the financial sector, the Development Plan proposes to expand the functions of offshore accounts and move towards capital account convertibility. This would be a major step towards facilitating the free flow of capital/people in the region, and we look forward to further updates as to how this will be implemented.

The expansion of cross-boundary investment in financial products In the KPMG/AustCham report, the international business community also calls for expanding the channels for mainland China and Hong Kong residents to invest in financial products in each other’s markets. The creation of more integrated insurance products for the GBA, and the development of a platform to enable GBA residents to buy insurance freely throughout the region – perhaps through the introduction of an ‘Insurance Connect’ scheme similar to the Stock Connect – would be a welcome development.

Indeed, the concept of some form of an Insurance Connect scheme could be on the horizon, with the Development Plan supporting insurance institutions in the GBA to jointly develop innovative cross-boundary motor vehicle and medical insurance products, subject to compliance with the legal and regulatory requirements. It also proposes to provide facilitation services for cross-boundary policy holders in areas such as underwriting, investigation and claims.

A GBA coordination and communication mechanism for financial regulation Importantly, the Development Plan calls for a coordinated approach to financial regulation and to strengthen cooperation March 2019

The introduction of the Development Plan marks a positive step in laying the foundations for facilitating the flow of goods, services, capital, talent and information across the GBA.

Hong Kong to maintain its status as a global offshore RMB hub Hong Kong serves as a conduit for financing investment and trade activities within the GBA, and should seek to strengthen its unique position and advantage as a gateway between the international market and mainland China.

As Chinese companies continue to expand their global footprint, Hong Kong remains a key offshore hub for facilitating the internationalisation of the RMB. The Stock Connect schemes, Bond Connect and Mutual Fund Recognition have laid the foundations and could lead to further loosening of regulations, resulting in more RMB-denominated equity products and investment portfolios.

Overall, the introduction of the Development Plan marks a positive step in laying the foundations for facilitating the flow of goods, services, capital, talent and information across the GBA. The continued growth of the GBA is expected to increase demand for financial services, expand the space for mainland Chinese and Hong Kong residents and institutions to make cross-border investments, and is likely to further relax restrictions on capital flows between mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau. This could lead to the creation of innovative products and opportunities for international financial services companies to grow their presence into the wider GBA. Building on the foundations of the Development Plan, we hope to see local governments and regulators within the GBA prioritise fostering collaboration with the private sector – including the international business community – to achieve mutually beneficial growth in the GBA. AustCham Hong Kong is urging Australian businesses to participate in the Greater Bay Area opportunities particularly around Financial Services and Innovation. cont P.7

Cover Story cont from P.6

We compare our key financial services recommendations outlined in our joint KPMG/AustCham GBA report and the official Development Plan.

Recommendations in KPMG/AustCham report – Connecting opportunities in the Greater Bay Area

The Development Plan

• Hong Kong plays a key role in helping GBA to develop as a venture capital investment and financing hub, creating the funding ecosystem that is essential to fostering innovation and entrepreneurship. Hong Kong must commit to be a cornerstone of defining the innovation hub capability of the GBA, be clear of the intrinsic value of Hong Kong and encourage collaboration from cities across the region.

• Support the engagement of Hong Kong’s private equity funds in the financing of innovation and technology enterprises in the GBA, allow eligible innovation and technology enterprises to secure listing in Hong Kong for capital financing, and develop Hong Kong into a financing centre for high-tech industries in the GBA.

• Create integrated insurance products for the GBA, and develop a platform to enable GBA residents to buy insurance freely throughout the region while ensuring capital controls are met with regards to the repayment of insurance policies.

• The introduction of an Insurance Connect, similar to the Stock Connect scheme, would enable Hong Kong insurers to offer health and medical insurance to GBA residents.

• Hong Kong’s international asset management and private wealth capabilities could serve the population within the GBA, helping to promote a culture of longerterm investment coupled with asset diversification.

• Subject to compliance with the statutory and supervisory requirements, to support insurance institutions in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau to jointly develop innovative cross-boundary motor vehicle and medical insurance products, and provide facilitation services for cross-boundary policy holders in areas such as underwriting, investigation and claims.

• To widen the scope for cross-boundary investment by Hong Kong and Mainland residents and institutions, and steadily expand the channels for Mainland and Hong Kong residents to invest in financial products in each other’s market.

• Introduce a financial services GBA licence, supported by the respective regulators to enable financial institutions to operate broadly across the GBA.

• To establish a GBA coordination and communication mechanism for financial regulation, and strengthen cooperation in the monitoring of financial institutions as well as the monitoring and analysis of cross-boundary capital flows.

• Hong Kong should maintain its status as a global offshore RMB hub and become a hub for the Belt and Road Initiative, with the AIIB, the Silk Road Fund and the New Development Bank to be based out of the city.

• To strengthen Hong Kong’s status as a global offshore RMB business hub.

• To support Hong Kong in playing an active role in the operation of the AIIB. • To support the Silk Road Fund and related financial institutions to establish subsidiaries in Hong Kong and Macau.

• Closer cooperation between the mainly Hong Kongbased traditional financial services business and the growing fintech businesses in Shenzhen, with the aim to innovate global financial services markets from the GBA.

• To take forward the opening up and innovative development of the financial sector, expand the functions of offshore accounts, make reference to the system of free trade accounts of the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone, and proactively explore effective paths to capital account convertibility.

• Create standardised and reciprocal AML/KYC standards across the GBA

• To enhance the mechanism for supervision, cooperation and information exchange relating to AML, counterterrorist financing and anti-tax evasion in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau.

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Cover Story

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Delegation Lifts Lid on GBA Policy Blueprint Vice Chair of the Construction, Property, and Infrastructure Committee, Michael Camerlengo of KMPG, was AustCham’s delegation representative on a recent trip organised by the PRC’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He provides these insights from the GBA visit.

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ollowing the recent release of the Policy Blueprint for the Implementation of the Greater Bay Area (GBA), in late February the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China in the Hong Kong SAR organised a delegation of consular corps and international chambers to visit key cities, company sites and public officials across the GBA.

and east-west bridge construction projects are also underway and in future planning, as is the development of many social infrastructure projects. Real estate development across all segments is also expected to be prominent, particularly transport oriented and industrial development.

What is the GBA? A national policy initiative to encourage greater economic integration of Hong Kong, Macau and nine Southern Chinese cities (Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Foshan, Dongguan, Zhongshan, Zhuhai, Huizhou, Jiangmen and Zhaoqing) leveraging the geographic proximity of this 70 million-population into a connected city cluster.

The key takeaways from the delegation’s visit included: Infrastructure & Real Estate development A major feature of the GBA policy drive involves extensive infrastructure development. This includes significant transportation infrastructure that has been deployed already with the XRL high speed rail connecting Hong Kong with Shenzhen and Guangzhou and the Hong Kong-Macau-Zhuhai Bridge being commissioned last year. Major intercity railway

Gavin Ku, Australian Consul of the Australian Consulate, Xie Feng, Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China in the Hong Kong SAR, and Michael Camerlengo, AustCham representative and Partner, KPMG Hong Kong

Navigating the political, regulatory and social differences of one country, two systems, whilst fostering closer integration will require careful thought and planning.

March 2019

cont P9

Cover Story cont from P.8

environment and citizens of the GBA. This is expected to include a growing shift away from carbon-intensive coal-based power into cleaner and more renewable forms of power generation.

Eco-tourism also appears to be a growing area of opportunity, with the delegation’s visit to Dongguan Hu-Yang Lake a prime example of growing demand in this space.

9 Manufacturing is changing The core manufacturing base is rapidly shifting from traditional labour-intensive manufacturing such as textiles and building materials to advanced and more automated manufacturing processes including robotics, smart consumer appliances and hi-tech industry applications. This was evident in visits to Midea in Shunde and TopStar in Dongguan.

Expanding the construction value chain With the strength of Chinese construction players growing on a global scale, the big players such as China Rail Group are expanding their expertise into increasingly complex elements of the works supply chain. This includes investment in tunnel boring machine (TBM) development, moving to compete against the traditional Japanese and European players in this space. Foshan based CREG & CTC Union Heavy Equipment Co is a case in point, selling TBMs into many global markets including Qatar, Singapore, Lebanon and other Belt and Road jurisdictions. It is expected that this trend will offer growing opportunities for the Hong Kong construction industry to leverage this expanding technology and talent base to enhance innovation and professionalism levels of the local industry.

Environmental sustainability a priority The Blueprint emphasises a focus on green development, reducing pollution and implementing more sustainable industry practices that have long term positive impacts on the

Challenges remain Navigating the political, regulatory and social differences of one country, two systems, whilst fostering closer integration will require careful thought and planning. By extension, key measures of success for the initiative will be the generation of greater and more efficient flows of people, capital, information and goods across GBA cities. If these aspects are effectively navigated, it is expected the initiative will offer significant opportunities for Chinese, Hong Kong, Australian and other international businesses.

The delegation included representatives from countries far and wide including Australia, China, Hong Kong, France, Belgium, Spain, South Africa, Singapore, Nigeria, Sweden, Vietnam, Qatar, Indonesia and Japan. Many thanks to the Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the PRC in Hong Kong for organising such an informative and enjoyable delegation.

Hong Kong Focus

Business Costs Eased in Budget 2019 Hong Kong Budget Address highlights

Environment and Food

Investment Income

$33.5B

$47.9B

Economic

$38.5B

Salaries Tax

$66.6B 10

9.0 %

Recurrent expenditure

$441B

Security

$56.8B

Stamp Duties

$76B

Infrastructure

$79.1B

Health

Other Revenue

$88.6B

$133B

Total Government

Total Government

Expenditure

Revenue

$626.1B

$607.8B

Others

(including community and external affairs)

Land Premium

$143B

$90.1B

Social Welfare

Profits Tax

$97.2B

$159.6B

Education

$124B

Economy

2018 Performance 2019 Forecast

GDP Growth

Headline Inflation

Underlying Inflation

3%

2.4%

2.6%

2%-3% 2.5%

2.5%

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ustCham welcomes the series of measures announced in the 2019 – 2020 Budget by Hong Kong SAR Financial Secretary Paul Chan, with a focus to “supporting enterprises, safeguarding jobs, stabilising the economy, strengthening livelihoods”. Addressing the economic uncertainty and challenges Hong Kong is facing, the administration has promised to leverage our edge and seize the opportunity to foster a diversified economy.

The Chamber is pleased that many of the initiatives announced address issues raised in our ongoing dialogue with the administration. We will continue to work closely with

March 2019

all government bureaus and departments to support Hong Kong’s long-term prosperity and international standing.

In his speech, Mr Chan announced a ranged of measures to ease the cost on businesses, and to expand the network of Free Trade Agreements and actively expanding our network of Comprehensive Avoidance of Double Taxation Agreements (CDTAs).

Support enterprises • Waive the business registration fees for 2019-20 • Regularise the Technology Voucher Programme and double the funding ceiling for enterprises to $400,000 cont P.11

Hong Kong Focus cont from P.10

• Inject $1 billion into the Dedicated Fund on Branding, Upgrading and Domestic Sales, extend its geographical scope and increase the funding ceiling for enterprises • Extend the application period of the special concessionary measures under the SME Financing Guarantee Scheme to end June 2020 • Expand the networks of Free Trade Agreement, Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement, and Comprehensive Avoidance of Double Taxation Agreement • Expand the Economic and Trade Office network to strengthen external promotion and assist Hong Kong enterprises in exploring new business opportunities Financial Services Industry • Issue the first batch of government green bonds to promote the development of green finance

• Consider establishing a limited partnership regime and introducing tax arrangement to attract private equity funds to set up and operate in Hong Kong • Promote mutual recognition of funds with other jurisdictions to broaden the distribution network of local fund products • Provide tax concessions for marine insurance and underwriting of specialty risks, and facilitate them to issue insurance-linked securities • Promote the use of Faster Payment System for payment of government fees and charges • Issue virtual bank licences • Establish the Academy of F i n a n c e i n m i d -2 0 1 9 t o promote financial leadership development • Provide a $400 million seed capital for the Financial Reporting Council and enable it to waive levy in the first two years under the new regulatory regime

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Australia Focus

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What Next for the Global Economy?

One of Australia’s leading forecasters, Westpac Chief Economist Bill Evans, provided a downbeat assessment in his economic outlook at a recent AustCham breakfast briefing.

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ustralia’s economy has been subdued in the near term buffeted by the US – China trade tensions, a depressed housing and construction sector, and uncertainty around the upcoming Federal Election, according to Westpac’s Chief Economist Bill Evans.

He said we may not see a turnaround until 2021. In the short term he expects the Australia dollar to hover around 68 cents to the US dollar, supported by strength in commodities demand from China’s national infrastructure program.

The Reserved Bank of Australia (RBA) is forecasting growth in 2019 of 3% and 2.75% for 2020. Westpac has growth at 2.2%.

“The momentum in the Australia economy fell sharply in the second half of 2018 due to weaker consumer spending and the downturn in the residential construction cycle,” Mr Evans said. “Once that cycle turns down, it’s going to be negative for at least this year and into next.”

Along with a downturn in construction related jobs, he expects businesses to be nervous ahead of the election and for that uncertainty to translate into a reluctance to hire or make investment decisions.

of psychological help and in confidence but there is not much left to be done on interest rates.

Catch me I’m falling Perth house prices have been falling for more than four years which goes against the assumption that prices usually only fall for a year. Sydney and Melbourne have been experiencing some of the biggest falls for 30 years and should see a further easing of prices over the course of 2019 and into 2020.

“Unlike previous cycles where falls have lasted a year and then they stabilise and take off again, the Reserve Bank responds with big rate cuts, incomes are growing pretty well - this time it’s different and superimposed on that is a tight credit environment.”

“Business confidence has fallen sharply in recent months; in December and January it related to US volatility but it’s been sustained and my view is it will continue. The weakness is in retail related to the consumer story and in construction it’s to do with the residential story..”

“The other thing which no one is really talking about is I think the unemployment rate is going to start rising. We’ve had a good run in the unemployment rate. The reasons for that is we’ve seen a turn in the lead indicators for jobs. Jobs growth will soften in the lead up to the election.”

He expects the RBA to cut rates in August after the dust settles following the Federal Election. He said any rate cut would be March 2019

cont P.13

Australia Focus

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Untitled-1 1 20/3/2019 1:45:04 PM

cont from P.12

One bright spot in the economy has been Australia’s service sector including education and tourism which has benefited from Chinese students and visitors.

“Foreign students are up 17%. Overall, services exports have added half a percent to GDP. China is about 33% of our students but it’s only 18% of our tourists so it’s probably not as big as you might have expected,” Mr Evans said.

Key Takeaways • We now expect the RBA will cut the cash rate by 25 basis points in August and November 2019.

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• FED now on hold; market pricing in a rate cut in Australia.

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hong kong 6:15am, 25 April 2019 The Cenotaph, Chater Road, Central

Members of the public may lay a wreath according to the order of service Followed by Gunfire Breakfast: Grappa’s Cellar - $190 | $110 (3 - 11 years old) + 10 % LG/F, Jardine House, 1 Connaught Place, Central, Hong Kong Cash Only, Bookings Essential | 2521 2322

CM

• Adjustment in house price affordability will be through prices rather than rates and incomes as in earlier cycles.

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CY

CMY

• Issues around wealth effect will impact consumption and growth outlook.

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• Collapse in dwelling approvals signals big drag from residential construction in 2019 and 2020.

• Household balance sheets are still in good shape.

Australian Consulate-General

Westpac’s latest Economic and Market Outlook March 2019 is available here

Hong Kong

www.hongkong.consulate.gov.au

www.nzembassy.com/hong-kong

Feature

Cybersecurity – Are You Prepared?

Cybersecurity is a clear and present threat to companies and individuals. Recent high-profile corporate cases indicate the magnitude of the problem. An attack could come externally, or internally from innocent employees duped into clicking on something they shouldn’t. AustCham’s Financial, Legal and Taxation Committee recently hosted an interactive seminar on cybersecurity where our two speakers provided practical approaches to protecting yourself and your business.

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Are innocent employees your biggest risk?

• Virus locks all the machines, you are asked to pay a ransom to release your data

- presented by David Rainsford, CEO Albenque Advisors

Exfiltration Mal-Ware (Virus) • Virus that transmits confidential information to 3rd parties outside.

Most cyber theft today relies o n m i s t a ke s by i n n o cent em ploye es war n e d Dav id Rainsford, with cyber criminals becoming increasingly adept at social engineering techniques to convince employees it’s OK to click on that bad attachment, send confidential data, or wire company funds to an unknown bank account. David shared some typical scenarios, and what preventative measures you should take, including tools and training.

Common Security Attack Scenarios Penetration (Traditional hacking) • Connection to your systems via the internet - insecure passwords, poorly configured systems, or old software with vulnerabilities Email with Bad Attachment • 91% of cyber-attacks begin with an email.

1. Email (from person you know) with attachment (disguised virus); Opening attachment infects your machine, transmits virus to others 2. Email from unknown recipient, but strong social engineering to covercome reluctance to open attachment – lost package, your amazon order, etc.

Dangerous Websites (Clickjacking) • Uses social engineering to convince user to download something harmful - Facebook App, “your PC is infected”, downloader, etc.

Poison USB Stick • USB stick with virus plugged into PC. Ransom Ware (Virus) • Enters through one of the aforementioned paths, spread through your office network to EVERY machine on the network March 2019

Phishing • Uses social engineering to “fish” for private information • Bogus email - “Dear Customer…there is a problem... Please click here and log in...then Steals sign in credentials, then attempts account takeover –leading to theft, malware, or penetration etc.

Spear - Phishing • Highly Targeted, Personalized Bogus email , may use unsafe attachments • May use follow up telephone calls to convince employee to act.

Denial of Service Attack • Thousands of machines bombard your website with requests. Requests are normal, but sheer volume overloads server. Legitimate vistors cannot access.

Spoofed Account Email Scams • Email pretends to be from person you know, Urgent request to transfer money Email Account Takeover • Account belonging to person you know is no longer secure (e.g. logged in from public machine, and didn’t log out, or spearfishing victim) Where Do I Start?

1. Make sure you have up to date anti-virus tools on every device that accesses your systems 2. Ensure your software is up to date, and upgrades are being applied proactively 3. Make sure you have an adequate back up solution 4. Educate your staff in the risks 5. Either – • Commit to adopting a framework based Information Security Policy OR • Review your policies, including your Incidence Response Plan cont P.15

Feature cont from P.14

6. Perform an Information Security Risk Assessment using a recognized framework, such as ISO27000 (may need external help) 7. Deploy the polices to your staff / Review the current policy deployment.

Knowing the unknown

- presented by Kok Tin Gan, Cybersecurity Partner, PwC Hong Kong In his presentation, Kok Tin Gan, discussed some of the root causes of recent highprofile data breaches in Hong Kong and Singapore, explain the contributing factors and h ow hackers hack . M ore importantly described the practical measures that can be implemented to mitigate the risks. He also conducted a live hacking demonstration to illustrate the real-life attack scenarios.

Venue partner

What were the root causes of the data breach incidents?

• Ineffective security operations centre 24/7 monitoring • Lack of multi-factor authentication • Lack of real-life cyber attack simulation exercise • Inefficient security awareness • Insufficient end-point security protection What are the measures to implement to reduce the cybersecurity risk expose?

• Security awareness • Establish 24/7 security operations centre monitoring capability • Red training exercise • Two factor authentication • End-point security

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Making an Impact

AustCham Briefs Shadow Ministers

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uring their recent Australia visit, AustCham’s Deputy Chair Darren Bowdern and Chief Executive Jacinta Reddan met with Shadow Treasurer Chris Bowen and Shadow Minister for Trade and Investment Jason Clare in Sydney.

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They took the opportunity to discuss the Greater Bay Area Development Plan and the work the Chamber is doing to promote the opportunities GBA offers to Australian business. They also briefed the Shadow Cabinet Ministers on the Chamber’s successful intern program and the strong ties between Australia and Hong Kong it promotes.

Discussions also included the free trade agreement, the double taxation agreement as well as the Chamber’s campaign against the Federal Government’s proposed changes to the capital gains tax.

The story below appeared in the Australian Financial Review after the meeting.

March 2019

Industry Insight

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How is Technological Development Reshaping the Hong Kong Employment Landscape in 2019?

By Ricky Mui, Managing Director, Robert Walters Hong Kong

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n 2018, Hong Kong job market yet again demonstrated a robust performance with the unemployment rate falling to its lowest level in the past 20 years. We experienced robust economic growth and buoyant recruitment levels throughout the year, further supported by solid global demand for Hong Kong products and services, a rebound in visitor numbers and a strong economic growth in Mainland China. At the same time, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area and the Belt and Road initiatives are encouraging strategic partnerships and attracting investments within the region.

Looking into 2019, we expect the recruitment demand to expand further, stemming from key growth drivers including the acceleration of technological development, digitalisation and government initiatives to promote and support innovation and technology.

With technology and digitalisation continuing to rise across multiple industries, businesses are focusing on improving efficiency through technology integration leading to a higher demand for technology-savvy talent.

As blockchain technology, artificial intelligence (AI), e-commerce and digital marketing are integrated into business operations, professionals with expertise in these areas are highly sought

after. In addition, the growth in demand for specialists in emerging technology such as cyber security, AI, data analytics and machine learning is expected to continue in 2019.

Since the Hong Kong government has announced the Hong Kong Smart City Blueprint two years ago, we have seen a further increase in demand for technology expert specialised in AI, big data, research and development and the Internet of Things (IoT).

As a major international financial centre, Hong Kong’s financial services industry has demonstrated a remarkable progress in fintech development over the last year from the launch of the faster payment system to virtual banking licence applications.

Virtual banking and fintech will continue to be the hiring focus in 2019 with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) expected to issue the first virtual banking licence to a number of institutions in Q1/Q2 of 2019. We expect certain virtual banks will be in operation after that and thus driving a high demand for talent in that space.

On the other hand, the legal and compliance industry is also expected to be in the spotlight in 2019 on the back of the fast-moving regulatory environment and growing financial industry. The rapid evolvement of fintech companies and their hiring requests have led to a shortage of legal and compliance talent. Therefore, we envisage a high demand for legal professionals with regulatory experience in mobile payment, virtual banking, and cryptocurrency. Foreign and Chinese banks are also on a hiring spree with their ever-increasing demand for Chinese-speaking global market compliance professionals and lawyers. cont P.18

Industry Insight cont from P.17

The supply chain, logistics and procurement sectors also proved to be affected by the digital transformation and the rise of e-commerce. Whilst some logistics and distribution companies are setting up smaller regional distribution centres to facilitate faster delivery, others are embracing 3D printing to streamline supply chain management. With an increased adoption of emerging technologies, we anticipate companies evolving towards a more advisory and consulting capacity, such as fourth-party logistics (4PL) or supply chain integrators that will drive demand for technology-savvy supply chain professionals.

expect a steady uptake in contracting positions with senior professionals and technical specialists hired to run projects.

On the salary side, we expect the salary growth to be stable across most roles, with job movers receiving 10-20% salary increments in 2019. Technology-related salaries are the exception, with professionals possessing niche or scarce skills able to command premium pay rises of 30% or more when moving roles. Regulatory specialists are also receiving increases due to the shortage of professionals in this area.

We expect technology and innovation will continue to drive growth in Hong Kong’s job market in 2019. More and more jobseekers are upgrading their professional abilities to meet a growing market demand for specialists with technology skill sets. Employee retention has become one of the key priorities in a candidate short market. Employers are advised to upscale talent retention and salary is no longer the only factor in career decisions. Other factors such as benefits, work-life balance, upgrading skill sets, career progression and overall work culture are equally as important in determining job satisfaction.

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(statistic drawn from Robert Walters HK Contracting Survey 2018)

At the same time, the ‘gig economy’ of Hong Kong is growing and we notice the contracting market has gained further traction in the past few years. More employees now prefer contract over permanent roles to broaden their project exposure and at the same time enjoy better pay and job flexibility. We

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discreet matchmaking March 2019

Mentor Programme

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ustCham Chairman Andrew Macintosh spoke on ‘Sustainability and What You Can Do’ and the potential to make a difference in your careers at our recent Mentor Programme session. Andrew, who is also COO of The March Fund, a food technology sustainability fund, provided an introduction to the concept of sustainability (beyond environmental sustainability) and an overview of the Sustainability Development Goals.

An earlier Mentor Programme event set a different tempo with a team building dance session with Title sponsor: the instructors from Move for Life.

Perhaps not Strictly Ballroom, but any lacking in technique was up for with enthusiasm. Our thanks to the instructors from Move for Life.

EVENTS UPDATE MARCH AT A GLANCE… Thu, 21 March, 6:30pm – 9:00pm Mix at Six Mr Wolf, 5/F Crawford House, 70 Queen's Road, Central, Hong Kong

APRIL AT A GLANCE… Thu, 4 April, 12:00nn until late AustCham Commonwealth Bank Rugby Sevens Lunch Grand Ballroom, Grand Hyatt Hong Kong, 1 Harbour Rd, Wan Chai, Hong Kong Tue, 9 April, 12:00nn – 2:00 pm Media Matters: Meet with the Presidents of the New York Times International & New York Times Company Private Function Room, 13/F, The China Club, The Old Bank of China Building, Bank Street, Central, Hong Kong

MAY AT A GLANCE… Tue, 28 May, 6:30pm until late AustCham Westpac Australia China Business Awards Gala Dinner Grand Ballroom, Grand Hyatt Hong Kong, 1 Harbour Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong

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International Women’s day

Busting Gender Preconceptions in Hong Kong AustCham Board member and CEO of ANZ Hong Kong, Ivy Au Yeung, provides this perspective on the recent PwC and The Women’s Foundation report on gender diversity in Hong Kong

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There’s a myth in Hong Kong, and globally, that women often leave work to start and raise a family – but new research has shown it has more to do with the opportunities (or lack thereof) presented to them.

A new report from PwC and The Women’s Foundation on gender diversity in Hong Kong is based on a study commissioned by a group of senior female leaders in the financial services sector to understand the current state of gender diversity in Hong Kong, explore common gender preconceptions and make recommendations to move from conversation to action.

families. However, 73% of the surveyed organisations said “lack of career progression” and other career opportunities are the top reasons why women leave their organisations.

Only 21% of organisations listed “lack of childcare/parental caregiver options” and 14% said “cultural pressure to stay at home” as the top driving exits from their organisations.

From my experience, mentorship and sponsorship are useful in supporting women’s career progression. The survey results show 79% of senior female employees agreed mentorship for women would have a positive impact on their career. The figure goes up to 89% for sponsorship.

Flexible working policies was identified by 86 per cent of employees as essential to enable both men and women to meet family and other life responsibilities.

Mentoring programs are usually more structured and formalized, the mentor commits to getting to know the participant and provides advice on career and leadership development.

“Flexible working policies was identified by 86% of employees as essential to enable both men and women to meet family and other life responsibilities.”

I think sponsorship can better position women to advance in the workplace by taking the relationship to the next level.

A sponsor can help the talent move up in an organisation by facilitating opportunities, opening up broader networks and advocating for promotion.

Gender diversity within survey group

Flexible working policies were identified by 86 %of employees as essential to enable both men and women to meet family and other life responsibilities and by over 70% of employers as one of their top 3 diversity priorities, yet only half said their company had adequate policies in place.

During a panel discussion we had to launch the report, Fiona Nott, CEO of The Women’s Foundation said the findings were quite concerning and she lamented “a culture of presenteeism where we work, and we work some of the world’s longest hours”.

Source: PwC and The Women’s Foundation

“There’s a narrative issue with what flex work means in Hong Kong,” she said. “The solution to address that challenge is for companies to have a more open perspective on what flex work means and talk to employees about what it means for them.”

The survey found 52% of entry-level positions are filled by women. The proportion falls to 33% at the senior management level and declines further to 21% at board level.

Flex can mean working from home or working part-time but it can also be offering employees options to take time off in the day to meet their personal and family needs.

One of the common attempts to explain why there are fewer women at the top is women leave work to start and raise their

Some may argue diversity recruitment measures are necessary to increase female representation in senior roles.

March 2019

cont P.21

International Women’s day cont from P.20

However, findings from this report suggested formal diversity measures and policies do not always correlate with more senior female roles in the organisation. Organisational culture and discrete businesses or teams to take responsibility for their own culture and behavioral change would have more impact.

perception is that companies can be more transparent about their policies on pay parity and talk to employees about what it actually means for them.”

As the convener of an informal group of Women Chief Executives among the financial institutions in Hong Kong, I think there are a number of things the group has planned to address some of the findings. We have strategies around three different levels: • First, as the survey was conducted among 15 organisations, we will look into the findings and share best practices among this smaller group to help improve our gender diversity.

• Second, we would like to engage more financial institutions to have that conversation. We have shared the findings with 165 banks in Hong Kong through the Hong Kong Association of Banks (HKAB) to help start the conversation.

Image: (L-R) Ali Tse, Transfer Pricing Director, PwC Hong Kong (moderator); Ivy Au Yeung, CEO Hong Kong, ANZ; Fiona Nott, CEO, The Women’s Foundation and Harjeet Baura, Hong Kong Financial Services Consulting Leader, PwC Hong Kong.

Also on our panel was Harjeet Baura, Financial Services Consulting Leader, PwC Hong Kong. He suggested that while policies and diversity measures are significant, it is important to build a workplace culture that enables inclusion and empowerment for all employees.

From senior management’s perspective, everyone says ‘Yes, we have this policy’, but as you get further down in the organisation, staff do not feel empowered,” he noted.

Policy is the enabler of normalising a culture of diversity and inclusion. But culture and tone from leadership is the driver.

As Harjeet said: “People need to work as a team and trust each other. Policies can’t do that. It’s all about the culture and DNA in the organisation. “ Companies also need influential male and female leaders to drive the top-down cultural change. “We need to change their mindset and convince people that it’s the right thing to do,” said Harjeet.

The survey also revealed the perception men are paid more than women. 72% of senior female employees felt they do not earn as much as senior men while only 23% of senior male employees agree with this. However, all of the surveyed organisations confirmed they have internal processes to review and ensure there is no pay disparity between men and women.

Fiona shared the mandatory report requirements on gender pay gap in the UK and how it helps reduce the gap because of the transparency. “The way we should address the [pay gap]

• Third, we hope to link up with the relevant departments of the HKSAR government to make a broader impact across other industries in Hong Kong. The government is keen to maintain Hong Kong’s position as an international financial center and I think gender diversity might be something that we can work further on.

Fiona’s final point was worth emphasising: “There are incredibly important findings from this report which are specific to Hong Kong. We can share them with other industries and they can take a deep dive through the findings and question whether [these issues] are present in their organisation. There are also fantastic recommendations and I’m sure they can help move the conversation forward.”

This story was originally published by bluenotes, ANZ’s newsroom for insights, opinion, research and news about the economy, financial services, investment and society, from within ANZ and outside. Read more at www.bluenotes.anz.com Visit this webpage to access the full report: https://www.pwccn.com/en/industries/ financial-services/publications/genderdiversity-in-the-hong-kong-financialservices-sector.html

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Committees in Action

WIBN: International Women’s Day Great Debate

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he motion was put at our International Women’s Day Great Debate that men divide and women unite. The motion was defeated. Our thanks to WIBN Chair Simone Wheeler, Sally Dellow of Dramatic Difference, Andrew Weir of KPMG, queen and king of the night, King & Wood Mallesons’ Sue Kench, Neil Waters of Egon Zehnder, and, of course, our fantastic moderator back for another year, Angelina Kwan of BitMEX for a very entertaining evening.

March 2019

Women in Business Network sponsors:

Venue sponsor:

Committees in Action

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Committees in Action

AustCham People Forum : Coaching – What the …

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here is a lot of buzz about executive coaching, leadership coaching, performance coaching, life coaching - but what does it all mean. It was all demystified at our interactive round-table discussion on different approaches and reasons why a coach may be needed sometime during in your career; to help secure a promotion, to enhance team performance and personal relationships, to set goals for the new year or because you want to be a better version of yourself. Our thanks to speakers Graham Barkus, Managing Partner, The Human Factor, Sally Dellow, Director, Dramatic Difference, Venue sponsor: Karen See, co-Founder, {embrace} Worldwide and moderator Sandra Leung, Head of Diversity and Inclusion for Asia Pacific, J.P. Morgan.

News

Change a life by joining the AIEF Nation Changers Syndicate

Founding Member on the Mend

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he Australian Indigenous Education Foundation (AIEF), one of AustCham’s CSR Partners, invites you to become a founding member of the AIEF Nation Changers Syndicate – an influential group of business and thought leaders whose investment enables AIEF to provide the transformative opportunity of a scholarship for an Indigenous student to attend a leading Australian school.

In addition to financial assistance, AIEF provides career and mentoring support to ensure students complete Year 12 and make a successful transition from school to further studies or employment, productive careers and fulfilling lives.

Becoming a Founding Member of the Syndicate involves a tax-deductible donation of AUD20,000 each year for six years, which covers an Indigenous student’s boarding fees, tuition fees and other incidental expenses throughout their secondary schooling.

For more information contact Andrew Penfold AM, Executive Director at andrew.penfold@aief.com.au.

March 2019

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ustCham Hong Kong founding member and Chamber stalwart, Ian Robinson, was in hospital recovering from a fall. Ian, who is known to many of you for his many years of engagement with the Chamber, fell while playing golf and subsequently underwent surgery for a broken pelvis. He is now recuperating at home. We are sure you join with us in wishing Ian a speedy recovery.

New Members A warm welcome to our new members.

Platinum Patron

Change Enablement John Prentice

Langham Place Mong Kok Hong Kong Shaun Campbell

F45 Stevun Vongtongtip

Star Rapid Angela Black

Ovolo Group Raoul Gundelach

ANZ Shirman Lai

Platinum Patron Additional

Tata International Nicholas Way

Ruder Finn Asia Limited Chantal Cheung

University of Newcastle Andrew Sunol

The Financial Times (HK) Ltd Hannah Carmichael Angela Mackay

CLP Holdings Roy Massey Jessie Wong

V Concepts Michael Yates

United Outcomes Paul Shaffery

Telstra Zoe Cartledge

Corporate Patron

Wharf Hotels Management Limited Jennifer Cronin

Corporate Member Additional Law in Order (Hong Kong) Limited Mei Yong

Baker McKenzie Robert Wright Matthew Love

Herbert Smith Freehills Adelaide Luke Jeremy Birch Emily Rumble Emilie Soust Isabelle Lamberton

Christopher Liang

Matthew Mckenzie

Benoy Pansy Cham Nang Wong

BNP Paribas Felicity Ann Youl

Evergrande (Securities) HK Limited Pinky Ying Tung Tang

Commonwealth Bank of Australia Tim Milne

Hudson Benson Pang

Deutsche Bank Julie Murphy

International Digital Currency Markets Paul Kam

Expat Living Rebecca Simpson

QBE Insurance Hong Kong Lei Yu

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited Tomas Butlin

Year round Mates’ Rates: Member Benefit Program 2019 These exclusive member benefits and discounts listed are available only to AustCham Hong Kong members, accessible by downloading a Membership eCard.

This provides exclusive marketing opportunities for members to promote their company’s products and services, replacing the month-by-month offer which was limited to only one company’s benefit or discount.

More details on our website. Terms and conditions apply. www.austcham.com.hk/membership/ membershipecardandspecialoffer

ard

Young Executive Colin Fung Ling Leung

Individual Member

FCM and Flight Centre Hong Kong Jaana Chan Danielle Wong Puja Rajwani Courtney Bothma

Membership eC

Hong Kong University of Science & Technology Sacha Cody

Corporate Member

Jones Lang LaSalle Daniel Clyne PwC James Storey

Food & Beverage Dining Concepts: Enjoy 15% off on all a la carte dining.

Marco Polo Hotels - Hong Kong: 15% off at Cucina, Cafe Marco, Three on Canton and add@Prince Island Shangri-La Hong Kong: 15% discount on regular-priced items Lifestyle Expat Living Free one year subscription Travel Virgin Australia: 15% off selected business and economy class fares Hotels Grand Hyatt Hong Kong: Special offer on F&B and Plateau Spa Hotel VIC: Enjoy 20% discount on F&B at Cruise, The Farmhouse and The Farmhouse Deli.

Ovolo Hotels: 20% off on the Best Available Rate

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Corporate Profile

Joint Dynamics 26

www.jointdynamics.com.hk Joint Dynamics is Hong Kong’s first integrated studio featuring physiotherapy, osteopathy, chiropractic care, massage therapy and personal training. We provide an individualised approach to performance, prevention and treatment of movement dysfunction and injury. We have two spacious facilities – one in the heart of Central and also our newest space in Dorset house, Quarry Bay. For more details about our regular events and our services offered, visit our face book page, web site or instagram @jointdynamics.

What are the main skills of your job?

Ultimately, we are a service provider. We blend the science of the body from rehabilitation, wellness and performance with detailed attention to each individual’s needs, lifestyle and goals. Our skill set, at its simplest, is understanding movement. The movement our clients currently don’t have and aspire to - to free them from pain, to assist them in functional activities outside in their real life or just to come to a place where they feel comfortable and confident in their bodies with a better understanding of how it works and what they can do about it each day.

What does your company do particularly well?

We have an incredible knowledge bank to draw from. It is expanding most days. We utilize that knowledge organically and also in a structured defined way, to raise the standard of each of our therapists and coaches and hopefully the industry as a whole. I would say our strength is staying abreast of the most up to date understanding of human function and how to apply that to the broad spectrum of clients we see on a daily basis.

What’s something most people wouldn’t know about your company?

We also put on quality events to support and create community through education, and movement.

How would you describe your workplace and colleagues?

Fun, enthusiastic, curious and welcoming.

What’s the most unusual thing you have had to do as part of your job?

Geez… from filming an exercise video for a push up device and having to shave my entire upper body, to promoting a piece of exercise equipment at a Rugby Sevens event which was mostly lonely but at times very entertaining, to having a first-time client strip down to his underwear in the middle of the gym. There have been many; all fun and a part of having a go I figure.

What is the vision of your firm in 10 years?

We recently opened our second venue (July 2018) and we have aspirations for our third in Hong Kong in the not too distant future. In 10 years our vision would be to have a multinational company that sets the standard for performance, rehabilitation and quality care. Plus, platforms to expand our March 2019

Andrew Cox Director of Training reach of those that we serve and what they want and need by sharing our body of knowledge, systems and culture on online platforms and workshops/immersive experiences.

What’s your firm’s connection with Australia?

Apart from strong Australian accents and too many colloquialisms, three of the four owners are Australian. I grew up in country NSW (Tamworth), two of my business partners grew up in Lilydale, Melbourne. Our final business partner is from Croydon in London. All of us have lived in other countries and travelled quite extensively but “we still call Australia home”.

Why did you join AustCham, and what do you hope to get from your membership?

Quality connections to motivated and inspiring people who are happy to share and exchange points view. If we get that all the other stuff that business owners require will take care of itself.

If you were not in your current job what would be your dream job?

As a kid I always wanted to be a pirate or an astronaut, some of those desires are lingering. Potentially that is a desire for adventure and freedom beyond the constraints of a commitment to growing a multinational company… flip side if we grow our company to our desired space we may be afforded with more freedom. But to take on my “dream job” I would love to be hanging out with my kids more and being the coach of their footy team, netball team, chess club, maths meet up group, and whatever sport they played. Also I really enjoy presenting so I would add the odd workshop and presentation to the list.

What’s your favourite place to go (or to eat) in Hong Kong in your spare time?

I eat the vast majority of my food from home. My wife is equally passionate about nutritious food and its therapeutic benefits so I take my food to Joint Dynamics with me each day. Each time I travel I have a ritual to eat at Beef and Liberty before boarding the plane so as not to eat plane food and I genuinely like their food and the meat is good quality. On rare days I don’t bring food (or enough of it) I will often eat at Nood. For fun with our kids they like Pizza Express or Nomads. We enjoy Mr Potato Head and the chill out room out the back playing sublime jazz is a great way to end the night or spend some time connecting with each other and/or friends.

On the Scene - AFL in Asia

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n the build up to the AFL match between St Kilda and Port Adelaide in Shanghai Sunday 2 June, AustCham was proud to host AFL legends Nick Riewoldt and Gavin Wanganeen. It was a rare opportunity to sit in an intimate setting to get to know the players, as well as hear their thoughts on the upcoming 2019 season. Many thanks to Port Adelaide Football Club, AFL and to our venue sponsor Mr Wolf for supporting the event. It was at this event that we farewelled our Business Development Manager Angus Perry who has returned to Melbourne. Our AustCham extended family expands to Melbourne and we wish him all the best in his next venture.

Proudly sponsored by

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