Here is a kind reminder on the upcoming meeting of The Economic Club of Hong Kong “Innovation & Hong Kong: Match Made in Heaven?”, which will happen this Saturday, July 20th, Sat 16:00 at The Globe (45-53 Graham Street, Central).
According to census data HK companies don’t see the market or business need to innovate. But is this the case?
The Hong Kong government wants to increase economic opportunities for its citizens and GDP growth. One area where HK has to improve to support the government agenda is innovativeness, which is about 1/10 of Australia or Germany and 1/5 of Japan. According to census data HK companies don’t see the market or business need to innovate. Policy options to facilitate innovation are (for example) funding of future industries like AI, biotech and robotics, or providing financial incentives to companies investing in innovation, like R&D tax credits.
What works best for HK, considering that 80% of HK’s GDP is from service industries like banking & finance, professional services, retail and logistics?
For this event we invited a speaker, Mr. George Cautherley. George was born in Hong Kong during the Japanese Occupation, the sixth generation of his family to have lived and worked in China. After education in the UK, George returned to Hong Kong in 1964 to pursue a career which involved marketing and distributing medical devices and pharmaceuticals to healthcare professionals. In the late 1970s he established his own enterprise marketing and distributing medical devices and pharmaceuticals, initially in Hong Kong and subsequently with expansion into the China market. In the early 2000s there was further development of the business into manufacturing in China of pharmaceuticals and medical devices for both local and international markets. More recently, George has invested in a number of early stage biotech companies. He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Business Administration by Napier University, Edinburgh in 2006 and in the Queen’s 2008 Birthday Honours George was awarded an OBE for services to public policy development in Hong Kong.
Please read at least one of the following articles prior joining the event:
- Is R&D the magic solution for Hong Kong (EJ Insight article, link)
- Building a more innovative economy in Hong Kong (EJ Insight article, link)
- R&D tax incentives – why they may not make sense (EJ Insight article, link)
RSVP for joining the event on Facebook (seats are limited) – https://www.facebook.com/events/2753154361421935/
Brexit: Lessons for Asia
July 23rd, Tue 19:15 | Salon No. 10, Arbuthnot Road, Central (map) | Sign up on Facebook or Eventbrite
The British referendum on membership in the European Union was a teachable moment for anyone interested in democratic politics. Over the course of the past three years, the British have revealed the limitations of direct democracy, the importance of political rhetoric, the difference between integration and disintegration, and the meaning of ‘relationship’ in the concept of international relations. But what does this mean in an Asian context? Are there any lessons to be learned?
Please join us to discuss these and other related questions.
Materials to read prior the meeting:
- Norwegian lessons for Brexit Britain (The Economist article, link)
- What Asia can learn from Brexit (Nikkei Asian Review, link)
- Four things we should learn from Brexit (International Institute for Strategic Studies, link)
- Trump and Brexit – Some lessons for South East Asia (ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute, link)
Register via Facebook or Eventbrite | July 23rd, Tue 19:15 | Salon No. 10, Central
—
Best Regards,
The Economic Club of Hong Kong Team
Follow us on facebook.com/econclubhk and instagram.com/econclubhk
Membership application form | Join our Whatsapp group via link
(Newsletter: Geoffrey Cheng / The Economic Club of Hong Kong.)
Geoffrey Cheng 