Finance Minister to visit Hong Kong, Singapore

Finance Minister Bill English will visit Hong Kong and Singapore next week, to meet business, investment and government leaders and update them on New Zealand’s economic programme to achieve faster growth and jobs.

“Asia and New Zealand have developed strong trade and business links in recent years, and we are building on that through a series of free trade agreements and other initiatives,” Mr English says.

“The Government is keen to continue open dialogue with business and government leaders in this part of the world – there is considerable interest in New Zealand’s economic programme.

“In particular, we will update them on economic and fiscal developments since I visited last year. We will also share ideas about building a strong and sustainable recovery from the worst global recession in many decades.”

Mr English will meet senior Government figures and speak to the New Zealand Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong on 31 August. The following day, he will meet Hong Kong Monetary Authority chief executive Norman Chan.

In Singapore on 2 September, Mr English will meet Foreign Minister George Yeo, speak to the New Zealand Chamber of Commerce and visit the Singaporean Agency for Science, Technology and Research.

The next day he will meet Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam, and Mr English will speak at The Economist Asia-Pacific regional economic forum.

ENDS

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