第二篇 Passage 2
As China’s political, cultural and diplomatic center, Beijing’s tertiary industrial output value now constitutes 58 percent of its GDP, and its municipal service function is being consolidated.
Beijing’s Vice-mayor Zhang Mao said the Beijing municipal government would take service trade cooperation as one of the key sectors for promoting Beijing-Hong Kong cooperation.
Overseas businesses, including those from Hong Kong, have been paying close attention to the opening of the service sector on China’s mainland, and intend to get involved in it. The service sector of Beijing has become a prime spot for absorbing overseas capital. Last year, Beijing approved 737 overseas-funded service ventures, accounting for 64.3 percent of the total new overseas-funded businesses in the city, involving US$3.28 billion in contractual overseas capital, constituting 75.8 percent of the total.
Li Zhao, Director of the Beijing Committee of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation, believes overseas investors are keen on China’s service sector because of the promising investment prospects and favorable investment environment.
Over the past years, China’s service sector has developed rapidly, enjoying an annual growth of nearly 13 percent. Overseas investment in the sector has been expanding from hotels to other areas, including office buildings especially for foreign businesses, tourism infrastructure and scenic spots, intermediary services and consultancies, commerce, medical service and education. However, compared with service sectors of developed countries, which account for 80 percent of their national GDP, the Chinese service sector constitutes less than 40 percent. According to some economists, this indicates that, on one hand, China’s economic development level remains on the low side, and on the other hand, there is a huge development potential for Chinese service sector.
Michael Sze, Executive Director of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, attended this year’s Beijing-Hong Kong symposium. He predicted that Hong Kong-Beijing cooperation would focus on financing and service provision in the coming seven years. He said Beijing’s success in its Olympics bid and China’s WTO entry will accelerate Beijing’s development and economic restructuring, thus facilitating the formation of an economic structure with tertiary sector as the mainstay. The number of overseas and domestic businesses based in Beijing will increase, and so will their demand for legal, commercial arbitration, accounting, insurance, financial, advertising, exhibition and logistics management services.
Citing a UN report on international investment published in September, Sze said Hong Kong is Asia’s largest absorber and source of foreign direct investment, as well as the most powerful capital center of the region.
He noted that in order to successfully host the 2008 Olympic Games, Beijing would invest more than US$34 billion in a gigantic development plan. It includes construction of the Olympic Games Athletes Village, improvement of transport facilities, upgrading of telecom infrastructure and treatment of the environment. He said Beijing could raise funds for these huge projects through Hong Kong, and Hong Kong’s well-experienced professionals can provide support for Beijing’s construction.
课文词语 Words and Expressions from the Text
diplomatic center 对外交往中心
tertiary industrial output value 第三产业产值
the Committee of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation 外经贸委
the promising investment prospects 很好的投资前景
favorable investment environment 良好的投资环境
office buildings especially for foreign businesses 涉外写字楼
tourism infrastructure and scenic spots 旅游设施和景点
intermediary services and consultancies 中介服务与咨询
the Hong Kong Trade Development Council 香港贸易发展委员会
symposium 研讨会
an economic structure with tertiary sector as the mainstay 以第三产业为支柱的经济结构
commercial arbitration 商业仲裁
logistics management services 后勤管理服务
FDI----foreign direct investment 外来直接投资
upgrading of telecom infrastructure 提高电讯基本设施
treatment of environment 环境治理
