The establishment of the China International Economic & Trade Arbitration Commission Hong Kong Arbitration Centre will enhance Hong Kong's status as an international dispute resolution centre.

This was the message from Secretary for Justice Rimsky Yuen at the centre's inauguration ceremony at the Central Government Offices today.

Mr Yuen said the new Arbitration Ordinance, which came into effect last year, represents a major milestone in efforts to enhance Hong Kong's arbitration regime.

The ordinance reinforces the advantages of arbitration, including respect for the parties' autonomy, savings in time and costs, and confidentiality in arbitration proceedings and related court hearings.

Mr Yuen said arbitral awards made in Hong Kong can be enforced in more 140 contracting jurisdictions under the New York Convention.

Regarding the Mainland, in 1999 the Supreme People's Court and the Department of Justice signed the Arrangement Concerning Mutual Enforcement of Arbitral Awards, modelled on the principles of the New York Convention and setting out the conditions for mutual enforcement of arbitral awards.

It has been effectively implemented by courts in both Hong Kong and the Mainland, further strengthening the status of Hong Kong as a regional centre for international arbitration, he added.

"The establishment of the centre, coupled with the existing arbitral institutions in Hong Kong, including the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre and the Secretariat of the International Chamber of Commerce International Court of Arbitration (Asia Office), will place Hong Kong in an even stronger position to meet the demand for high-end arbitration services."