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What’s New

Hong Kong Update for Travellers and Others Get travel advice and stay on top of the latest developments in Hong Kong affecting the airport, public transport, public safety and other issues. Details here.
Public Health Response Plan Activated Hong Kong health authorities continue to monitor developments regarding the emergence of an outbreak of respiratory illness caused by a novel coronavirus. A dedicated webpage has been set up to provide relevant information and health advice. Details here.
Chief Executive attends WEF Annual Meeting January 22, 2020 - Chief Executive Mrs Carrie Lam, leading a Hong Kong delegation, arrived in Davos, Switzerland (Jan 21) to start her three-day visit to attend the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting. She attended a WEF session with an address by the Vice Premier of the State Council, Mr Han Zheng, and met with the Prime Minister of Singapore and the Prime Minister of Luxembourg to brief them on the latest situation in Hong Kong. She said Hong Kong experienced an unprecedented challenge last year, but with its solid foundation, she expressed confidence that the city is capable of overcoming the current difficulties. She emphasized that the Hong Kong SAR Government has all along been adhering to three principles in handling the social unrest, namely upholding the "One Country, Two Systems" principle and the Basic Law, respecting and safeguarding the rule of law and protecting Hong Kong's institutional strengths. At the WEF session "Expanding Asia's Technology Leadership", Mrs Lam pointed out that Hong Kong, as an international financial center, can also provide plenty of capital for I&T development in Asia, which is emerging as an important I&T region. Mrs Lam also gave interviews to two international media organisations separately. Details here.
Greater travel convenience for HKSAR passport holders January 22, 2020 - Kenya will grant entry visas upon arrival to Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) passport holders and stay in the country for up to three months, according to the Immigration Department (Jan 22). HKSAR passport holders may also apply for an online e-visa for Kenya. Noting that Kenya is along the Belt & Road, the department said under the Belt & Road Initiative, the visa-on-arrival arrangement would bring greater travel convenience to HKSAR passport holders visiting Kenya and strengthen the tourism, cultural and economic ties between the two places. This arrangement brings to 168 the number of countries and territories that grant visa-free access or visa-on-arrival to HKSAR passport holders. Details here.
Government disagrees with Moody’s rating January 21, 2020 - The Hong Kong SAR Government strongly disagrees (Jan 21) with Moody’s decision to downgrade Hong Kong’s long-term issuer rating to “Aa3” from “Aa2”, while changing the credit outlook to “stable” from “negative”. A Government spokesman said, “Moody’s rating falls way out of line with Hong Kong’s sound credit fundamentals.” These included strong confidence in the Linked Exchange Rate System, strong and sound liquidity of banks, thriving capital markets, buttressed by the city’s institutional strengths such as the rule of law; an independent judiciary; a robust supervisory regime; free flows of capital, talent, goods and information; and a simple and low tax regime. Details here.
Record number of firms invest in HK January 21, 2020 - Invest Hong Kong assisted 487 overseas and Mainland companies to set up or expand in Hong Kong last year, up 11.7% year-on-year, setting a new record.The number of fintech companies and start-ups saw the strongest growth. The total number of jobs thereby created (6 009) rose by 14.1% over the previous year's figure. "2019 was another record year for InvestHK in terms of the number of companies assisted and the number of jobs created by those companies. Hong Kong continues to attract overseas and Mainland investors because of its core advantages and emerging business opportunities, especially in the light of the latest developments in the Greater Bay Area and the Belt and Road Initiative," said InvestHK's Director-General of Investment Promotion Stephen Phillips. Details here.
December inflation grew 2.9% January 21, 2020 - December's overall consumer prices rose 2.9% year-on-year (Jan 21). Netting out the effects of the Government's one-off relief measures, the underlying inflation rate for the month was also 2.9%, unchanged from last November. Year-on-year price increases were recorded for food, miscellaneous goods, housing, meals bought away from home, miscellaneous services and transport. Year-on-year decreases were recorded for electricity, gas and water, clothing and footwear, durable goods as well as alcoholic drinks and tobacco. The Government said the underlying consumer price inflation rate was stable and price pressures on most major Consumer Price Index components stayed modest or moderate. Details here.
Unemployment rate grows to 3.3% January 20, 2020 - Unemployment rate for the October – December period rose to a provisional 3.3% from 3.2% in the September – November period. The underemployment rate remained unchanged at 1.2% in the two periods. Secretary for Labour & Welfare Dr Law Chi-kwong said the labor market slackened further as economic conditions stayed weak. The unemployment rate of the consumption and tourism-related segment of retail, accommodation and food services sectors stayed at a three-year high of 5.2%. “The labour market will be subject to even more pressure in the near term if the overall economy stays weak. The Government will monitor the developments closely,” Dr Law added. Details here.
Core events of StartmeupHK Festival 2020 announced January 20, 2020 - Lifestyle and retail tech, smart city, artificial intelligence, the Internet of things, e-sports, environment and sustainability are some of the key themes of the 5th edition of the StartmeupHK Festival (Feb 10 - 15). The event will also see the finals of the global Jumpstarter and WHub start-up pitching competitions. An international mix of more than 300 speakers from 54 countries or territories will discuss their experience and know-how in a range of panel sessions, fireside chats, keynotes and presentations. The festival attendance is set to exceed 17,000 delegates. Details here

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