On December 15, the Guangdong Office of the Macao Chamber of Commerce was officially inaugurated in Hengqin as the chamber's first office outside of Macao. This office will help Macao companies integrate themselves into the overall development of the country.

In order to better respond to the Macau SAR Government's guidelines of going out and coming in, to provide good business services and to promote business ties outside Macao, the chamber has set up a Guangdong office within the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin (hereinafter referred to as the cooperation zone). The cooperation zone will tighten the common bonds of economic and trade exchange and cooperation between the two regions. In addition, representatives from the chamber’s office will help build a platform for regional economic and trade cooperation, provide scientific policy advice, promote the integration of government, industry, academia, and research, support the development of industry, and help promote the interconnection of information between the two regions.

Lei Wai Nong, Secretary for Economy and Finance of Macau and Director of the Executive Committee of Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin, said that with the establishment of the office on the Chinese mainland, the business and industrial sectors in Macau and the Chinese mainland have entered a new phase of connection and cooperation. Since the inauguration of the cooperation zone, the Macau SAR Government and the cooperation zone have engaged in multi-faceted and in-depth cooperation. In fact, there are now more than 5,200 Australian-funded businesses in the cooperation zone and a total registered capital of over 145 billion RMB. He encouraged the Guangdong office to play a unique and active role in further promoting Macao-Hengqin and Guangdong-Macao economic development and business cooperation.

"This is the Commerce's first office outside of Macao," said Ma Chi Ngai, President of the Macao Chamber of Commerce. He added that the Guangdong office will primarily provide relevant policy information and safeguard services to Macao businesses that are already in the cooperation zone and for those interested in entering. These features will help them better integrate themselves into the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, especially within that of the cooperation zone. At the same time, the office based in Hengqin, has been oriented to the entire Guangdong Province and provides services for Macao companies that intend to expand their business to other regions of Guangdong Province.

President Ma said that the office will conduct a comprehensive survey by visiting Macao businesses in the cooperation zone to understand the common problems facing them and to provide guidelines for upcoming companies.