香港加速與珠三角融合步伐

Hong Kong and its neighboring Pearl River Delta-south China's industrial hub in Guangdong province-are moving toward tighter integration, aided by new transportation links and efforts by both sides to bolster stronger economic ties.

得益於新建交通紐帶以及雙方加強經濟聯繫的共同努力，香港與一衣帶水、位於廣東省的華南工業中心珠三角地區正在朝着更緊密融合的方向發展。

For the former British colony, the push for tighter relations reflects the need to boost competitiveness and to better capture booming domestic demand in the world's second-biggest economy. Meanwhile, markets in China, as with other parts of Asia, are racing to catch up to Hong Kong's well-established financial institutions and sound regulatory regimes.

對曾經作爲英國殖民地的香港而言，加強與內地關係反映出香港增強競爭力的需要以及更好地把握世界第二大經濟體內需的需要。與此同時，與亞洲其它地區的市場一樣，內地的市場也努力在經營有序的金融機構和完善的監管制度等方面迎頭趕上。

Proponents of greater integration say better linkages will allow the region to capitalize on Hong Kong's high-end financial services and Guangdong's manufacturing and services, to become a so-called megalopolis. "We each have our own value that we can bring," says Roy Chung, who heads the Federation of Hong Kong Industries.

支持加強融合的人士說，更緊密的聯繫將使這一地區從香港的高端金融服務業和廣東省的製造和服務業獲益，成爲所謂的"特大城市"。香港工業總會(Federation of Hong Kong Industries)主席鍾志平說，我們雙方都有可以貢獻的價值。

On the eve of the 15th anniversary of the city's hand-over to China, Beijing is announcing a raft of policies to further bolster Hong Kong's role as a regional financing center and main offshore hub for its tightly controlled currency, the yuan. The measures are being presented as Chinese President Hu Jintao kicked off a three-day visit to the city on Friday, his first in five years, where he will preside over the swearing-in of incoming Hong Kong leader Leung Chun-ying.

在香港迴歸中國15週年前夕，北京方面宣佈了一系列進一步提升香港作爲地區金融中心及人民幣主要離岸中心地位的政策。北京宣佈這一系列政策的同時，中國國家主席胡錦濤上週五開始對香港進行爲期三天的訪問。這是他五年來首次訪問香港。

The Chinese government also is supporting the city's efforts to lead development of yuan-conversion and other core services as part of a pilot project in a coastal area of western Shenzhen, at the heart of the delta. The move could benefit Hong Kong's robust services industry, particularly in finance and banking, providing them with greater access to Chinese enterprises in southern China.

中國政府還支持香港牽頭人民幣兌換和其它核心服務的發展，這是位於珠三角中心的深圳西部沿海地區的一個試點項目的一部分。此舉有望給香港發達的服務業帶來好處，特別是金融和銀行業，使其獲得爲華南中國企業提供服務的更多渠道。

Analysts warn that if Hong Kong doesn't do more to capitalize on China's growth and work more closely with its neighbors, the city risks getting left behind. Mr. Leung, the city's new chief executive, noted in his election platform that by some estimates, the city's economy will be ranked just seventh in China by 2015, eclipsed by second-tier cities such as Suzhou and Tianjin.

分析人士警告說，如果香港不採取更多措施來利用內地的經濟增長、不與內地更緊密地合作，香港可能會落後。香港新任特首樑振英曾在競選政綱中指出，根據一些估計，2015年前香港經濟在中國將只能排在第七位，被蘇州和天津等二線城市超越。

Massive infrastructure efforts are speeding the integration process, among them projects such as the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge that, when completed in 2016, will be the world's longest seaport bridge, spanning 18 miles. Hong Kong also is being linked up to China's massive high-speed rail network.

規模龐大的基礎設施建設項目正在加快香港與內地的融合過程，其中包括港珠澳大橋。主體工程長度爲18英里（約合29公里）的港珠澳大橋2016年竣工後，將成爲世界上最長的跨海大橋。香港還將與內地龐大的高速鐵路系統連接在一起。

Still, some critics worry that Hong Kong's identity risks getting subsumed into the region. Many residents feel besieged by the waves of mainland Chinese who come to the city to shop, sight-see and buy property. In February, a group of residents paid for a full-page ad in newspapers calling such mainlanders "locusts." The move provoked widespread reaction, including criticisms among mainland Chinese bloggers that Hong Kong people don't regard themselves as Chinese.

不過，也有一些批評人士擔心，香港在身份認知方面可能會被歸入這一地區。很多香港市民感覺被如潮水般赴港購物、觀光和買房的內地人所包圍。今年2月，一羣香港市民在報紙上刊登了整版付費廣告，稱這類內地人爲"蝗蟲"。此舉引發了強烈的反彈，內地博客作者批評香港人認爲自己不是中國人。

Since Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule in 1997, it has continued to operate with distinct political, legal and economic systems.

自1997年香港迴歸中國以來，香港一直繼續在自己獨特的政治、法律和經濟體系下運轉。

"For the first few years [Chinese authorities] were very cautious not to touch Hong Kong too much," said Pansy Yau, economist at the Hong Kong Trade Development Council.

香港貿易發展局(Hong Kong Trade Development Council)經濟師邱麗萍(Pansy Yau)說，香港迴歸後的最初幾年，中國有關部門非常謹慎，沒有觸碰香港太多。

But with a subsequent economic downturn, exacerbated by the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, or SARS, outbreak in 2003, Beijing launched a number of policies to help the city, including looser restrictions for mainland Chinese visitors. Last year, some 28 million such visitors traveled to Hong Kong, a boon to the tourism industry and luxury retailers, with most of the tourists originating from prosperous, neighboring Guangdong.

但此後隨着香港經濟陷入低迷、而2003年爆發的非典疫情(SARS)又使香港的經濟困境變得更加嚴重，北京推出了一系列政策來幫助香港，其中包括放鬆對內地旅客進入香港的限制。去年到訪香港的內地遊客約有2,800萬人次，這給香港的旅遊業和奢侈品零售業帶來了實惠。這些遊客大都來自與香港毗鄰的發達省份廣東。

It wasn't that long ago when Hong Kong, a city of seven million, was the only major financial and industrial center near southern China. While China was still closed to most of the world, Hong Kong flourished from the 1960s as a major trading center and manufacturing powerhouse, exporting consumer goods-ranging from electric fans to toys-to Western markets, including the U.S.

曾幾何時，擁有700萬人口的香港還是華南地區附近唯一的主要金融與工業中心。從20世紀60年代開始，在中國內地仍與世界多數地區不相往來的時候，香港作爲重要貿易中心和製造業重鎮已經繁榮起來，它向包括美國在內的西方市場出口電扇、玩具等消費產品。

It was a common sight at the time for many Hong Kong residents, most of whom are immigrants from China, to carry cartloads of consumer goods and other daily necessities on trains back to their relatives in Guangdong, who were living under harsher conditions.

當時的一個常見景象是很多香港居民(多爲內地移民)乘坐火車北上，把大量消費產品和其他日用品帶回給生活條件艱苦的廣東親戚。

When China began implementing market reforms from the late 1970s, Hong Kong manufacturers were the earliest to move their factories over the border to Guangdong to capitalize on cheap and plentiful labor.

當中國從70年代晚期開始實施市場化改革時，香港製造企業是第一批前往內地投資的外商，它們將其工廠遷至廣東，利用那裏廉價而豐富的勞動力獲利。

Though Hong Kong has long been seen mostly as a portal for companies entering mainland China, increasingly, capital has flowed in the other direction. Since 1993, mainland-related enterprises have raised more than 3.2 trillion Hong Kong dollars (US$413 billion) in equity funds in Hong Kong.

雖然香港一直以來主要被視爲外國企業進入中國內地的一個門戶，但香港現在已日益成爲內地資金流向海外的門戶。1993年以來，與內地有關的企業在香港通過發行股票共籌得超過3.2萬億港元（合4,130億美元）的資金。

Mr. Leung, who takes office Sunday, says Hong Kong needs to develop its relationship with mainland China, both economically as well as culturally. "We are not tenants of a small island, we are one family," he said shortly after winning office in March.

週日就任香港特首的樑振英說，香港需要發展與內地之間的經濟和文化關係。他今年3月份在勝選不久後說，"我們不是小島的房客，我們是一家人"。

"We may have different backgrounds, but our next generation has a common future," he said. Beijing has said that Hong Kong's independent political, legal and economic systems are guaranteed to last at least through 2047.

他說，"我們即使沒有共同的背景，我們的下一代有共同的未來"。北京表示，香港獨立的政治、法律和經濟制度至少將維持到2047年。