Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK), the investment promotion agency of the Hong Kong government, opened a service centre in Guangzhou yesterday.

It aims to help business people in South China better understand how to invest in Hong Kong. The facility is InvestHK's second service centre on the mainland; the first opened in Beijing two weeks ago.

"The problem for Guangdong investors and those in other regions in South China is that they have inadequate information about Hong Kong, including information related to the industries they hope to engage in there," said Mike Rowse, director-general of InvestHK.

"Hong Kong's systems of laws, tax, banking and accounting are also what mainland investors are unfamiliar with," he added. "They need guidance, and we can give them a helping hand."

Most mainland-invested enterprises in Hong Kong are State-owned or are run by those with "kinship" in Hong Kong, he said, but small- and medium-sized enterprises are increasingly looking at Hong Kong for investment opportunities.

Official statistics indicate that Guangdong-based companies set up or expanded investment in Hong Kong for 21 projects in the January-May period, with capital input worth US$167 million. And Guangdong-invested projects numbered 714 in Hong Kong by the end of 2005, involving US$2.82 billion.

Peter Leung Pak-yan, director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Guangdong, said that Guangdong business people's investments in IT and logistics industries in Hong Kong are very successful.

Liang Yaowen, head of the Guangdong provincial foreign trade and economic co-operation department, earlier said the time has come for Guangdong's business people to play a more active role in Hong Kong, and the investment potential for them in Hong Kong is substantial.

Liang said the efforts of the Hong Kong government and the provincial government of Guangdong to help local business people know more about investment opportunities in Hong Kong are paying off.

Editor: Yan