Mr Baird, Peter (Cremers), distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,

It is my great pleasure to be here at the Opening Ceremony of China Maritime 2008, the second biennial exhibition after its very successful debut in Hong Kong in 2006. My warmest welcome to you from around the world in joining this exhibition.

China Maritime 2006 was a big success. In collaboration with the Hong Kong shipping industry, Mr Baird and his team put together a remarkable exhibition featuring the full range of maritime equipment and services from all over the world to meet the needs of ship owners and the industry.

This year, the enthusiastic participation in the event by some 130 quality exhibitors and 3,000 registered visitors is, once again, a strong vote of confidence in the sustained growth in the shipping and maritime industry.

Indeed, the global shipping industry has enjoyed the longest period of a buoyant shipping market unseen in decades. An increasingly globalised and liberalized trading environment, fueled by the economic powerhouse of Mainland China, has sustained high demand for sea transport, and contributed to rapid expansion of the shipping industry and port infrastructure in the region.

Over the past seven years, China's shipbuilding capacity has increased at a mind boggling speed of nearly 30% a year, making China the world's third largest shipbuilder after South Korea and Japan. This has made Asia a land of opportunity for the global shipping and maritime industry. Hong Kong, an international maritime centre located at the heart of Asia, is best positioned to capitalise on these opportunities. This exhibition is a good example of Hong Kong being the ideal location to bring together our key industry players. Taking the opportunity of this 3-day exhibition, I am sure our industry partners and service providers would do their best to introduce to you the comprehensive range of quality maritime services that Hong Kong can provide, from marine insurance, legal services, arbitration, ship finance, brokerage, management, ship registration to surveying services to meet different industry needs.

In addition to offering a wide range of product information, this exhibition, together with the seminars to be held alongside, would provide a useful forum for industry participants to share experience, extend business networks, and discuss market developments. While many are optimistic of a robust market, rising oil prices, tightening credit and the slow down in the US economy do pose uncertainties for the shipping market. Many experienced industry players and ship owners who have weathered ups and downs in global shipping in the past decades would have a lot of wise counsel to share, and I am sure that many would benefit from such exchanges in meeting these challenges.

In closing, I wish all of you a very successful exhibition as well as a most enjoyable stay in Hong Kong. Thank you.