CEPA effect to expand Macao's export to mainland
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2004-03-04 14:40

Although the number of applicants to exploit China's Mainland/Macao Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) in Macao is still small, business people here held that the trade facilitation scheme is destined to yield a significant effect on Macao's export structure.

Jackson Tsui, chairman of the Macao Exporters and Importers Association believed that with a total of 167 categories of Macao-made products eligible to enjoy zero tariff to go into the mainland under CEPA terms, Macao will witness not only a multiplicity of industries, but also a change of export structure.

Currently, 80 percent of Macao's exports are destined to America and Europe, which are considered to be Macao's traditional export markets. While, the mainland's market only constitutes one percent of the local export.

"CEPA clinched in October 2003, and in effect on January 1 this year will take a little bit more time to show its substantial effect," said Tsui when referring to the fact that the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) government has only received 12 CEPA application books.

The 12 CEPA users are mainly committed in the businesses of logistics surrogate, transportation and cargo storage services.

"To many businessmen here, CEPA came as an unexpected favorable element for exports to the mainland," said Liu Jimin, manager of a Beijing-invested drug company in Macao.

When the Jurentang Pharmaceutic (Macao) Co. Ltd was set up here a year ago, it has been aimed to become the mother company's new strategic production base to explore the overseas market by using Macao's traditional links to the American and European markets. Now with CEPA's undeniable attractiveness, the company has planned to make some adjustments of the strategy.

The Jurentang Pharmaceutic (Macao) has just obtained the Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standard recognized by the US Food and Drug Administration, which made it one step closer to apply for the examination and approval with the State Food and Drug Administration to conduct export to the mainland.

Liu said that he understood that there have already been over 30 drug suppliers in Hong Kong that have made CEPA useful in carrying out exports to the mainland. He hoped that his company will become the first Macao-based drug exporter to enter the mainland.

The Macao SAR government has clung a high hope on CEPA's impact to diversify its economic structure so as to reduce its heavy dependence on incomes from the gaming-oriented tourism.

Since the beginning of this year, a trade delegation led by Francis Tam Pak Yuen, Secretary of Economy and Finance, has made trips to Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong Province promoting favorable CEPA measures on facilitating bilateral trade. The trip to Guangdong has been the most prominent when the number of delegates amounted to some 200, which showed an eagerness of Macao businessmen for the materialization of CEPA.

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