Liechtenstein, Hong Kong Cement Economic Ties

by Ulrika Lomas, Tax-News.com, Brussels

03 February 2012

Secretary of Commerce and Economic Development of the Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong (HKSAR), Gregory So Kam-leung, has recently held talks with Liechtenstein’s Foreign Affairs Minister Aurelia Frick, during a working visit to Vaduz, with the talks focussing on the excellent economic relations between the Principality and the Region.

According to the Liechtenstein government, the visit was in connection with the successful conclusion in June 2011 of negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA) between the member states of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), namely Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland, and Hong Kong, and was designed to deepen mutual economic and cultural relations.

The FTA signed on June 21 last year was orientated for the first time towards a so-called negative services list approach, whereby reservations regarding the provision of services must specifically be mentioned, otherwise a service will be considered free from trade restrictions. The government notes that the FTA is also the first EFTA agreement to contain a chapter on trade and the environment and to be accompanied by a parallel agreement on labour standards.

The government emphasizes that together with the bilateral double taxation agreement (DTA) concluded with Hong Kong in 2010, the FTA will serve to further strengthen trade between the regions.

Liechtenstein’s industry recorded foreign sales in Hong Kong of around CHF110m (USD120m) (EUR91m) in 2010.

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