The 7th WCIFIT | Chongqing Identifies Six Key Focus Areas for Chongqing-Hong Kong Modern Services Industry Collaboration

Ling Jian analyzed that Hong Kong, as an international financial, trade, shipping center, and sci-tech innovation hub, has developed a highly advanced modern services system leveraging its open economy, robust legal framework, and strategic location. The organic integration of Hong Kong's producer services with Chongqing's advanced manufacturing and modern services sectors will undoubtedly unleash new momentum for economic growth.

Among these collaborations, six manufacturing-intensive fields - technology R&D, industrial design, inspection & testing, intelligent operations & maintenance, low-carbon & environmental protection, and engineering technical services - have been identified as Chongqing's priority areas for developing producer services and the primary focus for Chongqing-Hong Kong cooperation.

Accelerating the development of a nationally influential sci-tech innovation center

It is reported that Chongqing boasts abundant scientific and educational resources, with its comprehensive sci-tech innovation index ranking 7th nationally and 1st in western China in 2024. The municipality is home to 11 national key laboratories and 583 municipal-level or above sci-tech innovation platforms.

However, the innovation capabilities of Chongqing's high-tech enterprises require further enhancement, and there is a shortage of large-scale comprehensive inspection and testing institutions. The municipality plans to add 500 large-scale sci-tech R&D service enterprises by 2027 and double the scale of its inspection and testing service industry chain to reach RMB110 billion.

Currently, Chongqing is focusing on building four major sci-tech innovation hubs: digital intelligence technology, life sciences, new materials, and green low-carbon development. The municipality is also establishing the Jialing River and Mingyue Lake Laboratories, along with a series of interdisciplinary research institutes for cutting-edge technologies. Additionally, Chongqing is implementing a "double doubling" initiative for high-tech and sci-tech enterprises, creating a full-cycle, full-chain, and market-oriented technology transfer and commercialization system, and developing a RMB100 billion-level inspection and testing industrial cluster.

Ling Jian analyzed that Hong Kong possesses robust fundamental research capabilities, a concentration of innovation resources, and significant advantages in innovation. By leveraging Hong Kong's strengths as an international sci-tech innovation platform, the two regions can collaborate in fundamental research, technological breakthroughs, commercialization of research outcomes, and product incubation. This cooperation will accelerate the cross-border flow of innovation elements, enabling a two-way empowerment of "bringing in international innovation resources" and "exporting innovation achievements."

Supporting the develpment of Western China's sole global "City of Design"

As a "vertical city", "8D magical city", and "historic industrial hub", Chongqing offers rich scenarios for integrated creative design. Currently, the municipality has gathered over 50,000 design enterprises and established 237 municipal-level design centers along with 11 national industrial design centers.

However, Chongqing still faces challenges such as a lack of design brands, leading design firms, and national-level design centers. As planned, by 2027, Chongqing aims to host over 500 industrial design enterprises, establish more than 15 national and 250 municipal-level industrial design centers, and achieve a total output value of over RMB300 billion in cultural creativity and design services.

Currently, Chongqing has already released application scenarios for vehicle design and AI big data, and hosted events like "Smart Expo Cup" Industrial Design Competition. By using design as a catalyst for integrated service model innovation, Chongqing is strengthening the full-chain design industrial cluster and fostering new formats such as "intelligent creation, cloud-based culture, interactive media, and tech-driven design."

Ling Jian stated that Hong Kong is an Asian design hub, bringing together diverse innovative ideas, products, and talent. Hong Kong can integrate Chongqing's rich manufacturing scenarios with its international design resources, allowing Hong Kong style design and Chongqing's mountain city culture to collide and spark stunning creative ideas.

Jointly advancing an international trade hub with two-way opening up

Chongqing currently has seven comprehensive bonded zones, ranking first in central and western China, and is accelerating the construction of a leading zone for international cooperation in inland opening-up. Last year, Chongqing's foreign trade import and export volume reached RMB715.4 billion, with laptops and motorcycles ranking 1st and 3rd in national export value.

However, Chongqing's export structure is relatively homogeneous, and traditional trade growth space is limited, necessitating the development of new foreign trade formats and products. As planned, Chongqing aims to achieve a foreign trade import and export scale of RMB1.1 trillion and a service trade volume of around RMB160 billion by 2027.

Currently, Chongqing is targeting key areas such as cross-border e-commerce and bonded maintenance, delving into the new areas of "cross-border e-commerce + industrial belts," and accelerating the construction of a foreign trade comprehensive service system that operates simultaneously "online and offline"; this municipality is also building specialized maintenance clusters for electronics, integrated circuits, machinery, metallurgy, and instruments, creating a diversified and multi-category bonded maintenance service system.

Ling Jian proposed that as a global trade center, Hong Kong has already become Chongqing's third-largest trading partner, and economic and trade exchanges between the two regions are inseparable. The two regions can jointly explore new areas in trade, deepen cooperation in goods and service trade, and explore the co-construction of global after-sales distribution centers and bonded maintenance inspection and certification systems, enabling deep coupling between the "inland open highland" and the "international trade hub".

Actively building a distinctive Western Financial Center

It's acknowledged that Chongqing's financial services lead in Western China, with financial assets totaling RMB8.9 trillion and total loans in local and foreign currencies surpassing RMB6 trillion. The municipality hosts 32 regional and functional financial institutions.

However, the internationalization level of Chongqing's financial sector and its ability to serve the real economy need improvement. As planned, the added value of Chongqing's financial sector is expected to reach RMB380 billion, accounting for about 9% of GDP by 2027.

At present, Chongqing is vigorously implementing the "Zhirong Huichang" project, continuously advancing the "Five Key Financial Themes" of sci-tech finance, green finance, inclusive finance, pension finance, and digital finance to innovate its financial service system. The municipality has established a series of investment-oriented "mother-child" funds, with a double recognition of reinvestment ratios for listed projects, promoting "investment-driven attraction" and "industrial-investment integration."

Ling Jian analyzed that Hong Kong, as an international financial center, enjoys global acclaim for its financial services. The two regions can extensively collaborate on cross-border RMB usage, settlement, and investment financing, jointly exploring the construction of efficient two-way investment channels to continuously enhance the capacity and quality of financial services in supporting the real economy.

Joint efforts to enhance the comprehensive land-sea logistics hub

Chongqing is the primary initiator and driving force behind the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor in western China and the country's first "Five-Type" national logistics hub. The municipality operates 23% of China-Europe Railway Express trips, ranking first nationally, while the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor connects 556 ports across 127 countries and regions.

However, Chongqing's logistics market entities remain relatively weak, with only 121 A-grade logistics enterprises (accounting for 1.4% of the national total), indicating an urgent need to strengthen overall market competitiveness. According to the plan, by 2027, Chongqing will add 20 A-grade logistics enterprises and reduce the ratio of total social logistics costs to GDP to 13%.

Currently, Chongqing is building a multimodal transport distribution system, leveraging the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor to cultivate an end-to-end international logistics service chain from order placement to delivery. The municipality is also expanding the functional capabilities of the China-Singapore, China-Myanmar, and China-Laos corridors while accelerating the development of a bulk commodity resource allocation hub and a domestic-international industrial and supply chain organization center.

Ling Jian noted that Hong Kong, as a global shipping and trade hub, has long maintained the world's top position in air cargo throughput. The two regions can strengthen cooperation in smart supply chains, multimodal transport, and cold chain logistics to elevate Chongqing's position in global industrial and supply chains.

Collaborative boost to knowledge-intensive business services

Chongqing is the first pilot city in central and western China for an international commercial arbitration center, having attracted 57 of the nation's top 100 law firms to establish branches. It has also founded the region's first intellectual property investment and financing association and gathered 155 accounting firms. The software and information services sector has achieved a main business revenue of RMB420 billion, with over 430,000 professionals employed.

Nevertheless, the internationalization of Chongqing's professional services, such as legal and accounting, requires improvement, and innovation capabilities in software and information services remain insufficient. By 2027, the municipality aims to host 35 accounting firms qualified for securities business, 20 law firms with 100+ practitioners, 800 patent agents, and over 10,000 new software enterprises.

Currently, Chongqing is accelerating the development of "Digital Chongqing," implementing the "Starry Sky" action plan, and establishing the Western Computing-Power Coordination Innovation Center and Computing-Power Scheduling Platform. Efforts are underway to bridge the "last mile" in intellectual property conversion, expedite the construction of the Financial Legal Service Center of Western China, and actively attract international accounting firms.

Ling Jian emphasized that Hong Kong is a key Asia-Pacific hub for international legal and commercial dispute resolution services, offering globally recognized professional services in accounting, law, and intellectual property. The two regions can expand professional service collaboration, strengthen digital connectivity, and facilitate the efficient flow of talent, technology, and data to achieve high-level open cooperation.

Source: New Chongqing - Chongqing Daily