Financial Secretary Paul Chan on Sunday said that Hong Kong's deepening cooperation with the Middle East can go beyond finance, innovation and technology, and investment.

Writing in his blog, Chan said the SAR can also promote more people-to-people and cultural exchanges, and mutual learning between China and the Middle East.

"During meetings and exchanges, many Middle Eastern investment institutions said that Hong Kong is international, diverse, and can respect different cultural values, allowing both parties to deepen cooperation on the basis of mutual respect and mutual benefit," he wrote.

"To them, Hong Kong's role as a 'super connector' not only connects the mainland with European, American and Middle Eastern markets, but can also be extended to connecting emerging markets with different backgrounds and cultures."

The minister also said his visit to Riyadh the past week was fruitful and that a series of projects were being facilitated as a result, proving that “Brand Hong Kong” not only has unique value, but also great development potential.

Chan also said he is in talks with the Saudi Arabia’s Future Investment Initiative to host its second summit in the SAR next year.