When you give something to someone, you should be selective about the gifts, and perhaps you expect the gifts to be of help or meaningful. Gifts have played an important role in human civilization.

What has been mentioned by the local media are the “36 gifts” presented by the central government delegation led by Vice-Premier Li Keqiang during his recent visit to Hong Kong. However, there have been few comments as to why those gifts are rendered.

Hong Kong entrepreneurs and the government – the recipients of those gifts – should study how we can make good use of them for our future development. Let me explain using some examples.

It is well known that the city’s service industries already account for about 93 per cent of its GDP, one of the highest ratios in the world. Due to external competition, Hong Kong’s primary industries have almost disappeared and secondary industries are also declining rapidly, causing a great imbalance in our economy. The higher the percentage, the more saturated and the tougher the internal competition of the business will be.

And the rule of the jungle means that the survival of the fittest will apply since too much water will drown the miller. Without the contained market of Hong Kong being extended, we will soon find many businesses starting to close.

On the other hand, the contribution of the service sector to the overall economy on the mainland is less than half that of Hong Kong. The mainland is also on the fast track to rapid urbanization, which demands wider and deeper development of the service industries.

In addition to having a self-development strategy, it will be wise “to greatly increase the mainland’s openness to Hong Kong in the trade in services” as the vice-premier put it in his keynote speech during his visit.

When it joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001, China had promised to open 100 service sectors based on WTO classification. Meanwhile the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) has further opened another 45 service sectors to Hong Kong and Macao alone. That is to say, both SARs will be in a more advantageous position to have market access for those sectors. To share the enormous opportunities, both government and business circles should work out their own marketing strategy for common prosperity.

Hong Kong is claimed to be the world’s freest economy, but it has failed to catch up with global trends when it comes to the issue of free trade. Hong Kong has been generously offering zero-tariffs to all of its trade partners, but it has been a rare exception that Hong Kong has obtained reciprocal treatment. Seeing that the city is being marginalized in this respect, the Hong Kong government does not know how to play the current free trade game due to its lack of experience, expertise and initiative.

Fortunately, Vice-Premier Li asserted during his visit his support for “Hong Kong to engage in multilateral and regional economic cooperation for greater development space”.

His support will include but not be limited to: (a) to incorporate Hong Kong into the free trade agreements signed by the mainland, particularly East Asia economic cooperation; (b) to support Hong Kong having direct negotiations with trading partners who have Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with the mainland; (c) to pay special attention to the interests of Hong Kong when executing FTA strategy; and (d) to strengthen the Hong Kong coordination position in the WTO and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).

If the plan works, Hong Kong consumers will have a better price for imported commodities, and more Hong Kong products will be exported. Eventually the manufacturing industries of Hong Kong may stop declining.

According to Article 109 of the Basic Law, the HKSAR shall maintain its status as an international financial center. Although the city as a financial cenetr is still growing, it is growing at a lesser speed than its competitors. In term of overall stock transactions, Hong Kong has been surpassed by Shanghai in its ranking in both international and Asian markets.

To ease the worry, the central government has agreed not only to consolidate but also upgrade Hong Kong’s standing as an international financial center. For this reason, the exchange-traded fund (ETF) constituted of Hong Kong-listed stocks will be launched. Support will also be provided to build Hong Kong as an international asset management center, and to develop Hong Kong as an offshore yuan center, amongst other things.

To Hong Kong manufacturers in Guangdong who are suffering operating costs pressure, and to suppliers who are being asked by Western buyers to outsource more of their production process to Indonesia, Vietnam, Bangladesh and so on (the “China plus one” strategy), Minister of the National Development and Reform Commission Zhang Ping has a solution.

In reply to an audience member’s query at a forum during Vice-Premier Li’s visit, Zhang said he believed the preferential treatment adopted by the central government in the development of desirable industries, in taxation, land supply and tariffs for import and export in western China will reduce the rising costs in eastern China. He affirmed that many regional governments in western provinces provide more attractive conditions to outside investors.

To summarize, the 36 initiatives are good news for Hong Kong. But it has also to be noted that the central government’s gifts are not a cure-all panacea to all of the deep-rooted problems in the city. Hong Kong has to find its own way to resolve them.

The author is a current affairs commentator.