Monday, March 25, 2024
The weather in Hong Kong is sunny partly and foggy along the coast in the morning and evening. It was hot during the day, with a maximum temperature of about 31 degrees in urban areas and a hot temperature of one or two degrees in parts of the New Territories. Blows a slight to mild southerly wind. Tomorrow will still be hot, with fog in the morning and evening. Temperatures dropped slightly on Wednesday. There was a brief period of sunshine on Thursday. The weather will turn erratic later this week.
■ Speaking at the opening ceremony of "Arts@Harbour 2024" on 24 July, the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chan Kwok-ki, said that the recent opening of this and many other arts and cultural events is a strong testament to Hong Kong's rapid rise as a centre for international cultural exchange between the East and the West.
■ Hong Kong will usher in the "Financial Events Week" this week, including the "Yu Ze Hong Kong" Summit Forum organised by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government. Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po revealed on the 24th that this year's forum will focus on how to promote family offices to settle in Hong Kong and continue to flourish in a challenging external environment. As of February this year, InvestHK's dedicated team had assisted 58 family offices to set up or expand their businesses in Hong Kong, while more than 100 others said they had decided or were preparing to set up or expand their businesses in Hong Kong. On the same day, Choi Ye introduced the week's financial events in his latest blog, and stressed that the "Safeguarding National Security Ordinance" has officially come into effect, and Hong Kong will concentrate on fighting for the economy in the future.
■ In recent years, Hong Kong's stock market has been in a downturn, and art investment has gradually become the new darling of family offices. In an interview with Hong Kong Commercial Daily, Deacons Corporate Finance Partner Eva Wong said that family offices and high-net-worth individuals are more interested in art with appreciation potential, and financial institutions have recently begun to be willing to accept clients as collateral for art.
■ The "Regulations on Safeguarding National Security" have come into effect, and HKSAR government officials continue to explain the "Regulations" in various ways. Secretary for Justice Lam Ting-kwok stressed on the 24th that the person involved must have criminal intent in order to be convicted, and the burden of proof to prove that the person involved has criminal intent lies with the prosecution, which is a higher standard. The Secretary for Security, Mr Tang Ping-keung, reiterated that the rights of procession and assembly as stipulated in the Ordinance are still protected, and that there is no problem as long as they are conducted in accordance with the law.
■ The convenor of the Executive Council, Regina Ip, said at the event on the 24th that she has continued to accept interviews with foreign media recently, and is willing to explain the "Regulations on Safeguarding National Security" if foreign businessmen and foreign scholars have questions. Mrs Ip also said that according to the institutions she came across, some said that there was no problem with the legislation, while others wanted to know more details, but did not see anyone "shocked to leave".
■ The large-scale outdoor art project "Art@Victoria Harbour 2024" organised by the LCSD will be held on both sides of Victoria Harbour from 25 March to 2 June. On the 24th, the team that produced the exhibition "teamLab: Light Ripples" introduced their ideas and challenges in the press preview.
■ A group of spontaneous citizens of the Hong Kong Provincial Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), the Hong Kong Defense Movement, and Yuen Long petitioned the U.S. Consulate in Hong Kong on the 24th, strongly condemning Smith, chairman of the U.S. Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC), for demonizing the "Safeguarding National Security Ordinance", intimidating U.S. businessmen and employees in Hong Kong, and urging the U.S. government to sanction Hong Kong. They all pointed out that only by implementing the "Regulations on Safeguarding National Security" can long-term peace and stability be achieved, and they also rebuked the United States, Britain, Japan, and other countries for their despicable methods and sinister intentions.
■ The Triathlon World Cup Hong Kong Station was held on the 24th. The Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Kevin Yeung, attended the event and said that Hong Kong is absolutely capable of hosting major sports events, and the Government plans to announce the mega events to be held in the second half of this year at the end of this month or early next month, covering culture, sports, arts, tourism, festivals, as well as large-scale trade fairs and conferences.
■ According to the Hong Kong Observatory, as of 3 p.m. on the 24th, the highest temperature of 31.5°C was recorded at the Observatory Headquarters, the highest in March since records began in 1884. On the same day, a man was suspected of suffering from heat stroke and fell into a coma while hiking in Ma On Shan, and was sent to hospital by helicopter for rescue. The Observatory reminds outdoor enthusiasts to pay attention to sun protection and heatstroke protection and stay hydrated.
■ A suspected child abuse case occurred in Kowloon City. The police received a report on the 24th that a 4-year-old girl fainted in a unit in Yuhaomen, and the ambulance personnel arrived at the scene and sent the girl to the hospital. Police investigation revealed that the girl suffered about 11 bruises on her upper body, back, hands and legs, and a local woman (38) surnamed Zhu was arrested for the crime of abuse or neglect of a child or young person in her care, and the case was referred to the Major Crime Unit for follow-up.
■ A 33-year-old man was found lying in a Tong stairwell on Ho Pui Street, Tsuen Wan at about 2 pm on the 24th. The man was left with suspected drug paraphernalia, and the cause of death is pending post-mortem determination. Two women, aged 43 and 49, were arrested at a unit at the scene for suspected possession of tools for drug consumption.
■ The 87th Passout Parade for the 87th Recruits was held at the CAS Headquarters on the 24th, with Chan Hak-kan, a non-official member of the Executive Council and a member of the Legislative Council, as the reviewing officer. Mr Chan presented awards to the outstanding officers and team members, and the graduates demonstrated their rescue skills on the spot to demonstrate the results of their training. In his speech, Mr Chan said that loving the country and Hong Kong is the core spirit of Hong Kong society and an important foundation for the steady and successful implementation of "one country, two systems". He believes that the mentees' active engagement in serving Hong Kong is an indispensable force for maintaining social stability and prosperity, national security and the "one country, two systems" principle.
■ With the theme of "Art March", the ice cream truck will be shuttled through the streets of Hong Kong, sharing the sweet taste of March with an ice cream. On 25 March, the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau's ice-cream trucks will visit Area C of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre Piazza and Tamar Park in Admiralty to distribute free ice-cream cream.
■ The Transport Department reminded the public on the 24th that the new round of computerized ballot applications for "Hong Kong Vehicles Heading North" will be accepted for registration from 10am on March 25 to 11:59pm on March 28, and the ballot results will be announced on March 29.
■ The 2024 enrollment process for postgraduate students from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan will start on April 1, which will be the first year after the epidemic to resume offline examinations. As before the pandemic, the entrance examination is divided into two parts: the preliminary examination and the second examination, and each institution can choose whether to participate in the unified examination organized by the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China. If the institution to which the candidate is enrolled will participate in the UEC arrangement, the preliminary examination will be set up by the candidate's chosen registration center, otherwise, the admissions institution will determine the preliminary examination arrangement on its own. The re-examination part will be arranged by each institution.
■ According to data from the Centre for Health Protection, a total of 3,260 TB cases were reported in Hong Kong in 2023, with about 170 deaths, half of whom were aged 80 or above. Although the number of TB reports in Hong Kong has been declining significantly over the past few decades, TB is still an important infectious disease in the world, and the relevant prevention and control efforts must not be relaxed.
■ In the URA's launch of the Mong Kok Sai Yee Street/Flower Market Road Development Project, Executive Director Wai Chi-shing said in his blog that the objectives of the project are not only to retain the characteristics of Flower Market, but also to solicit opinions to enhance the characteristics and atmosphere of the district, inject diversified development and new vitality, provide more space and a better business environment for shop operators, so as to enable the industry to develop sustainably in the long run.
■ Sha Tin Racecourse staged the BMW Hong Kong Derby Racecourse on the 24th, which was finally won by Yip Chuhang and Panton's "The Great Supreme" defeated Wu Pengzhi Stable's "Galaxy" and other horses. The trainer said after the race that the excitement of the second favorite "Grand Supreme" before the race was as good as that of becoming a champion trainer in 2013.
■ Last weekend, the new property market was hot, robbing some second-hand customers and focus. According to the statistics of Midland Realty branches, the bank's top 10 housing estates recorded about 21 transactions, a decrease of about 25% week-on-week, but after the withdrawal, it has maintained more than 20 double-digit transactions for four consecutive weekends, and the bank believes that the overall purchasing power of the property market is quite abundant.
■ Kerry Properties (683) The latest transaction price of a luxury house in Kowloon is HK$1 billion, breaking the record of first-hand luxury property transaction price in Kowloon over the years, and the transaction price of the saleable area of the property is about HK$86,289, setting a record high in the price of luxury houses in Kowloon.