Citigroup and Hong Kong University of Science and Technology announced Tuesday the opening of the second Citigroup International Case Competition 2004.

The event will bring to Hong Kong 17 teams of outstanding students from around the world including the Chinese Mainland, Hong Kong, America, Canada and Singapore etc. to compete on a real-life business case situated in Asia and provide recommendations on important issues and challenges facing the company involved.

Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury of the Hong Kong government Fredrick Ma said at the opening ceremony of the competition that Hong Kong has been successfully developed into a world financial services hub in the region, and has also demonstrated strong resilience both in the face of external shocks and during cyclical downturn.

He said it is therefore of particular relevance for this case competition to be held in Hong Kong, a place where business opportunities are plentiful.

Ma also believed that candidates of the competition would find that a most invaluable experience as they work together as a team to apply the knowledge they have acquired in solving problems in a business case situation.

Dean of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Business School K. C. Chan said such an enrichment activity would be very valuable for developing students' various interpersonal skills and have allowed them to gain international exposure.

Furthermore, hosting an international event allowed Hong Kong to be put on the world map of higher educational exchange activities.

Citigroup is a global financial service company with some 200 million customer accounts in more than 100 countries.