HIG HLI G HTS
Industrial Committee The Italian Chamber of Commerce is glad to introduce the newly created
• There are future development projects, such as the “Great Bay Area” that
Industrial Committee.
see Hong Kong as one of the major players • The OBOR (One Belt One Road) initiative, where HK can play a pivotal
The Industrial Committee is intended to bring together professionals to
role as “super-connector” between the Mainland and the rest of the world,
share insights and best practices from the Industry. It provides common
especially other countries in South East Asia.
platform to discuss challenges and opportunities with industry peers and to share the development and implementation of new market policies and
3. Why is it important to have the Industrial sector represented? What
regulations. Members of the Committee will exchange industry insights
are the functions and expectations from this working group?
and operation information, discussing latest labour market trends and future developments.
The companies operating in the industrial sector have dynamics and ways of working that are specific and quite different from other types of business.
We had a chat with the Chairman Luca Morlotti and Vice Chairman
A dedicated working group will be able to focus and support the participants
Giorgio Pagnoncelli to get to know more about the Committee and its
with initiatives that might have different priorities and targets.
mission.
Additionally, the networking between participants will help to share insights and common issues that might have been already faced and resolved by other companies of the group
1.What is the role/importance of Italy for the industrial sector? How has it changed in the past few years?
4. What role can this Committee play during these challenging times in Even though Italy is famous worldwide for fashion, food, and touristic
support to entrepreneurs & SMEs?
places, our country is also one of the major producers of industrial equipment and products in general.
Most Italian companies in Hong Kong are fully dedicated to the
management of their core business and have little time and/or resources to
In machine tools, Italy is ranked the second European exporter, and there
explore a number of transversal areas that can be beneficial to their general
are many other sectors, such as machines for ceramics, woodworking, food
development.
processing, textiles, and more, that are ranking in the top level worldwide.
There is a number of activities that can be leveraged by the committee
and made available to the single companies, such as: subsidies by local
Looking at the past few years, when we consider the market share of Italian
government (Invest Hong Kong) for the commercial penetration or
industries among western countries, the global scenario has remained almost
financial support schemes by SACE, just to name a few.
unchanged. However we are witnessing a strong growth of competitors
Additionally, the fact that the committee is a formal entity of the Italian
from the Far East. Mainly China, but also Korea and Taiwan are increasing
Chamber of Commerce, will make our presence more “official” and will give
their presence in the world with a fast and constant pace.
easier access to local governmental institutions, Embassies and Consulates
In this scenario, however, there are many opportunities for a large number
and other Chambers of Commerce in Hong Kong and Asean Countries.
of Italian SMES that, strong of the creativity typical of our culture,
Let me take the occasion to thank the Board of the Italian Chamber of
combined with a solid technical background, they are able to develop
Commerce for the strong support to this initiative and all the staff for their
innovative solutions that cannot be found in these new emerging markets,
kind availability.
which are more oriented to mass and cheap production . 2.How important is it for Italian companies in this industry to be present in HK and how does this help connecting and working with other Markets in Asia? Far Eastern markets are definitely growing fast and they are also quite big, both in terms of consumption and production of industrial goods, and this is the place where we need to be. There are a number of reasons to choose Hong Kong as Hub for Far East. In particular: • Geographical position. Hong Kong is in the very centre of Far East. From here you can reach all the countries within four hours flight. It also lies in the centre of the various time zones with max +/- 1 hour difference • All services (Banking, infrastructures, IT, transportation….) are among the best in the world. • Taxation is very straightforward and low 30
