TEHRAN — An Iranian trade delegation will visit Hong Kong this week, the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Consul General in Hong Kong Abdollah Nekunam announced.

A trade delegation comprising of 23 Iranian trade officials and businessmen will leave Tehran for Hong Kong on Monday to enter trade negotiations with their counterparts, the Persian service of ISNA quoted the Iranian official as saying on Saturday.

In addition to meeting with heads of Hong Kong’s major trade and commercial organizations and centers, the Iranian delegation will also visit state-of-the-art equipments and machineries employed at the ports of this world’s major trade zone. It is also planning to pay a visit to an exhibition of the small and medium-sized enterprises currently held in the island, the Iranian consul general in Hong Kong said.

Referring to the small and medium-sized enterprises as the driving force of Hong Kong’s trade and economy, he said that nowadays, producers in Hong Kong are more inclined to export services rather than products. He stated that the free trade zone relied on services for 95 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP).

Iran-Hong Kong trade volume in 2005 hit $251 million, with the Islamic Republic registering a positive trade balance surplus of around $180 million. RA/MA END MNA