Hong Kong International Airport has set new records for both passenger and cargo throughput, despite competition from other airports nearby, Secretary for Economic Development and Labour Stephen Ip told legislators Wednesday.

Taking September as an example, Ip said aircraft movements rose 17.9 percent, passenger throughput rose 15 percent, cargo throughput rose 19.2 percent, and transfer passengers grew 21.2 percent over the same month last year.

Ip said the Airport Authority, in view of the competition from neighboring airports, re-introduced a two-year new destination incentive arrangement in September.

The scheme offers a rebate of up to 50 percent on landing charges to encourage airlines to develop services between Hong Kong and new destinations.

Ip said the government has adopted a multi-pronged approach to enhance Hong Kong's position as an aviation hub. Through the policy of progressive liberalization, airlines can continue to expand their service network through Hong Kong.

"In the past two years, we have concluded completely open direct services or substantially expanded bilateral arrangements with a number of aviation partners, including the United Kingdom, the United States and countries in Southeast Asia," he said.

The new air services arrangement concluded in September allows more Hong Kong and Chinese mainland airlines to enter the market and substantially expands the frequency of services between the two sides.

It also provides additional rights for mainland airlines to operate via Hong Kong to Southeast Asia, and enables airlines of both sides to code-share with each other to link up Hong Kong's extensive international network with the enormous mainland aviation market.