Exemptions should be provided for the city's small and medium-sized enterprises when a proposed fair competition law is introduced, say three business groups.
Eva Cheng Yu-wah, permanent secretary for economic development and labour, accepted that exemptions should be considered. She said a competition law aimed to provide opportunities for SMEs to enter and freely trade in a market, not increase their burden.
She said society needed to discuss the type of exemptions required. For example, in Singapore an agreement was deemed to have no appreciable adverse effect on competition if the aggregate market share of parties to the deal does not exceed 20 per cent. Its guidelines also state explicitly that agreements between SMEs are rarely capable of significantly distorting competition.
Ms Cheng was addressing a forum on competition policy held yesterday by the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce, the Chinese Manufacturers' Association of Hong Kong (CMA) and the Federation of Hong Kong Industries. About 200 participants attended the event.
Participants and speakers agreed that fair competition could benefit the city's economy. However, most were opposed to a law covering all types of anti-competitive conduct. They also asked how much effect such a law would have on the big players who monopolise the city's road tunnels, electricity generation and container terminals.
The three business groups invited participants in the forum to sign a statement opposing the government's proposed cross-sector competition law.
