Mr Strand, ladies and gentlemen, good morning. It is my great pleasure to welcome you all on behalf of the Hong Kong Maritime Industry Council to the first joint seminar organised by the Council and BIMCO.

As a shipping organisation with more than 2500 members, covering two-thirds of the globe, BIMCO is a household name in the maritime industry. With its wide network, acknowledged expertise, and commitment to service, it is a leader in maritime training and has helped to nurture the development of many of today's successful professionals in the industry.

In the past few years, the shipping industry has enjoyed healthy growth, mirroring the continued expansion of the global economy. In China, we have witnessed rapid expansion in ship-building output, increased demand for shipping capacity and wider and more frequent service coverage. This level of development would not be sustainable without the availability of high-calibre maritime professionals. In joining BIMCO to organise this seminar, the Hong Kong Maritime Industry Council hopes to ensure that maritime professionals stay "ahead of the game" in sourcing the latest skills and applying these to the continued growth and success of the shipping industry.

As the leading international maritime centre in the Asia-Pacific, with the supporting infrastructure to match, Hong Kong is the ideal host for the BIMCO seminars. Let me give some statistical weight to this claim. We are the 7th largest maritime centre in the world, and our shipowners manage about 8% of the world's merchant fleet. In 2005, The receipts of Hong Kong's sea-going vessels sector topped HK$45.6 billion - representing an increase of over 50% from 2003. In the same period, the receipts of ship agents and shipbrokers rose by almost 30% to $6.5 billion. And let us not forget the insurers - between 2000 and 2005, the gross premiums of the maritime insurance business registered growth of over 50% to reach over $900 million.

Our achievements on the maritime front are underpinned by Hong Kong's free and dynamic economic environment. According to the Heritage Foundation, which recently released its 2007 Index of Economic Freedom, Hong Kong remains the freest economy in the world - a position that we have held since the Index was first published in 1995. We remain firmly committed to facilitating a free and fair market environment, regulated in accordance with the rule of law and in the interests of ensuring fair competition and maximum flexibility in the private sector.

As a free port, Hong Kong is highly attractive to ship owners, and we play a pivotal role in the global shipping industry. The Hong Kong Shipping Registry has grown nearly six-fold since 1997 and now has a registered tonnage of 33.2 million tons. Our maritime community includes owners, managers, brokers and a line-up of renowned financial institutions, insurance houses, law firms and other service providers. Some 900 shipping companies operate in Hong Kong, providing high quality maritime services not only to local and Mainland ship owners, but also to operators in the region and around the world.

In the national 11th Five-year Plan, the Central Government unequivocally supports Hong Kong's continued position as an international maritime centre. The Plan anticipates steady growth in the Mainland economy, and its burgeoning import/export trade will bring further impetus and opportunities for the maritime and shipping industry in Hong Kong. In order to capitalise on these opportunities, we will need to rely on maritime professionals. Through this seminar, we hope to provide a forum for sharing international shipping knowledge and a venue for exploring business co-operation in the Mainland and Hong Kong.

I am therefore very pleased to see the enthusiastic response to today's event. We have participants not only from Hong Kong and the Mainland China, but also from many other parts of Asia, from Europe, Africa and South America. I hope you will take advantage of this gathering of experts from around the world to share experiences and establish new contacts.

Without further ado, I would like to pass you over to Mr Strand to kick off the seminar. But before closing, I would like to wish you all a very fruitful experience and a pleasant stay in Hong Kong.

Thank you.