Hong Kong has some 80 international shipping lines with 450 sailings weekly reaching 500 destinations worldwide. There are about 900 shipping-related companies operating in Hong Kong, providing a great variety of high-quality maritime services ranging from marine insurance, maritime law, arbitration, ship finance, brokerage, management and registration to ship survey services. Hong Kong is now the seventh largest maritime centre in the world. Members of the Hong Kong Shipowners Association own, manage or operate over a thousand vessels with a total gross tonnage of over 39 million.

Building on its strong maritime community, some of the world's largest and oldest ship management companies are based in Hong Kong providing professional services not only to the Hong Kong registered ships, but also to ships calling our port. Other international maritime service providers also have established their presence in Hong Kong, providing various supplies and support services including ship maintenance and repair, bunkering, ship replenishment, waste disposal, information technology (IT) and communication services, auditing and tax advisory services and training services. The economic benefit and employment opportunities generated by the shipping and maritime sectors are therefore tremendous.

To enhance the competitiveness of the shipping industry, Hong Kong is proactive in negotiating double taxation relief arrangements covering shipping income with its trading partners. In September, Hong Kong signed an agreement for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income with Thailand. Together with similar arrangements with the Mainland, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Singapore, Sri Lanka, the United Kingdom and the United States, as well as the confirmed provisions of reciprocal tax exemption with the tax authorities of New Zealand and the Republic of Korea, Hong Kong has concluded double taxation relief arrangements covering shipping income with 13 tax administrations.