Chen Maobo: The interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve has created a more favorable investment and business environment for Hong Kong.

Recently, the Federal Reserve cut interest rates by 0.25%. Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po stated that this rate cut lets the market know that the interest rate environment is becoming more relaxed, which is relatively positive for deploying investments and business plans. More importantly, it is believed that the United States will continue to have several more rate cuts. When asked about the impact of the rate cut on the Hong Kong economy, Paul Chan Mo-po pointed out that the economy grew by about 3% in the first half of the year, and the forecast for the full year growth remains at 2% to 3% without adjustment. The Policy Address proposes to promote the expansion of the Gold Exchange and financial institutions in Hong Kong to exceed 2000 tons in 3 years as the goal and establish a regional gold reserve hub. Paul Chan Mo-po mentioned that this is the first step to enrich Hong Kong's role as an international financial center. The government has already identified a location and will expand facilities at the airport. He also noted that gold is an important strategic commodity and the mainland is one of the largest markets for gold usage in the world. Hong Kong's work in this area is strategically important and can proceed step by step.