"Standing at the new starting point for the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Guangzhou will deepen cooperation with Hong Kong," said Guangzhou Mayor Wen Guohui while giving an exclusive interview with Xinhua Agency.

Guangzhou and Hong Kong are members of one family and maintain close exchanges and contacts over the years, he said.  

"Guangzhou and Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) have both benefited from the cooperative and win-win development strategy since the reform and opening up," Wen added.

Statistics from Guangzhou commercial department show that a total of 12,000 enterprises or firms invested directly in Guangzhou over the past 20 years, with a contracted value of $62 billion. The total export-import volume between the two cities reached 99.68 billion yuan ($14.60 billion) in 2016.

Under the framework of "one country, two systems", several national-level cooperation frameworks, including a guideline for deepening cooperation in the pan-Pearl River Delta region issued by China's cabinet, the State Council, in March last year and the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) signed between Hong Kong and the mainland in 2003, have created opportunities for mutual development.

"Hong Kong is one of the largest sources of foreign investment and most important trading partners for Guangzhou," Wen said.

Hong Kong and Guangzhou have also made breakthroughs in some experimental programs for liberalization of service trade.

In Guangzhou's Nansha free trade area, Hong Kong enterprises can register to invest and its financial institutions can carry out cross-border renminbi investment and financing businesses.

In March this year, the construction of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area was mentioned by Premier Li Keqiang in his Government Work Report, with the aim of developing the bay area of South China's Guangdong province and the Hong Kong and Macao SARs into a world-class city cluster.

It is positioned in the role of an international financial, shipping, and technological innovation provider as well as global trade center and advanced manufacturing base.

"Guangzhou occupies the top and center part of the A-shaped bay area, and is the hub of the city cluster. The close cooperation between Guangzhou and Hong Kong will lead and drive the construction of the area," Wen said.

Wen went on to say technological innovation is an important growth pole driving the development of the bay area.

"Guangzhou will accelerate the construction of an innovation-oriented city, and develop knowledge, capital, and technology-intensive economy, and become an incubator for cutting-edge technologies," Wen said.

China Import and Export Fair Pazhou Complex, Guangzhou, is home to China Import and Export Fair, a comprehensive international trading event. [Photo/gz.gov.cn]

Skyscrapers stand above the horizon of Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong province. [Photo/gz.gov.cn]