Apr. 25 (NBD) -- Hainan and Hong Kong are to perform cooperation in ten areas including tourism, trade, finance, convention & exhibition, culture and sports, exchanges & education for teenagers, health care, scientific technological innovation, security administration and meteorology, according to an article released on the website of the Hainan Development and Reform Commission.

It's noteworthy that the cooperation intention is mutual. Hong Kong encourages enterprises in Hainan to realize the strategy of "going out' and help the companies get listed in the special administrative region.

Li Mingde, academic adviser at the Tourism Research Centre under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said to NBD that when building itself a free-trade port, Hainan could draw lots of experience from Hong Kong, the world's renowned trade center. Being geographically close to each other, Hainan and Hong Kong will see both competition and mutual promotion with the latter being the theme.

According to the above-mentioned article, Hong Kong is to offer help to Hainan to build a global center of tourism and consumption. The two sides will join hands in tourism marketing, enhance cooperation in cruise tour service in Asian area and co-host tourism festival or participate in special events held by each other.

Photo/Shetuwang

With regard to the cooperation in the tourism domain, Lin Jiang, deputy head of a free-trade zone research institute at Sun Yat-sen University, held that despite the fact that lottery is not a pillar industry in Hong Kong, the financial city boasts rich experience in horse race which can provide lessons for Hainan to develop horse race and sports lotteries.

Lin further explained that while adopting Hong Kong practices, the tropical island should develop a horse racing industry featuring its own characteristics.

According to Lin, the tourism industry has the chance to become the breakthrough point of Hainan's economic growth. Consumption in Hainan will be boosted via attracting international tourists, which will enhance development of industries such as modern service industry, Lin noted.

However, starting a horse racing industry isn't a matter of just building racetracks. It also requires a complete ecosystem by hiring trainers, jockeys and related managerial talents.

In areas of trade and finance, the support that Hong Kong would give to Hainan enterprises is underlined.

Hong Kong is to explore the possibilities to build service and trade cooperative parks on the tropical island, encourage Hainan enterprises to leverage the financial advantages in the special administrative region to better implement the "going-out" strategy, give support to Hainan enterprises to develop headquarters economy in Hong Kong and hold relevant investment promotion activities in Hong Kong, stimulate the set-up of sales networks of local companies in these two places so as to tap each other's markets.

Hainan enterprises will be also encouraged to issue bonds and bank loans, as well as to get listed in Hong Kong.

Lin stressed that in the course of getting listed in Hong Kong, Hainan enterprises can as well display the tropical island's potential and advantages to appeal to investors and talents around the globe, which will bring benefits not only to local companies but also to Hainan as a whole.

In return, to deepen cooperation with Hainan, Hong Kong is to blend in the overall picture of China's national development, which is helpful for expanding Hong Kong' presence and influence, Lin added.

Email: gaohan@nbd.com.cn