OOCL chairman CC Tung said in a recent luncheon organised by the Hong Kong Chamber of Commerce that the cargo transportation business of Hong Kong will continue to grow steadily this year, Xinhua reported.

But he also said Hong Kong logistics costs remained a formidable problem. With an edge in geography and price, he said, Shenzhen has handled increasing amounts of cargo over the past few years, handling 19 million TEU in 2006, and is estimated to exceed 40 million TEU in 2010.

Mr Tung said Hong Kong's logistic businesses should not only focus on the competition for cargo volume, but pay attention to developing more value-added services.

Mr Tung said it was still too early to say whether the pace of development will be as vigorous as it has been in the previous three years, adding that it would take three to six months to tell.