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POLITICSOct 6Hong Kong approves average fee hikes of up to 4.75 per cent for non-public schoolsHong Kong’s private, semi-private and international schools have been given the green light to raise tuition fees by an average of 4.75 per cent, 4.07 per cent and 4 per cent, respectively. The Education Bureau said on Tuesday it had received applications from 185 schools as of August 31 to adjust tuition fees for the 2026-27 academic year. They comprised 49 semi-private schools under the government’s Direct Subsidy Scheme (DSS), 74 private schools and 62 international ones. One application from...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSOct 6Russian gold floods Hong Kong as sanctions shift bullion trade to Asia: reportA report indicates that Russian gold is increasingly being traded in Hong Kong, suggesting a shift in the global bullion market due to international sanctions. This highlights the adaptation of trade routes and financial flows in response to geopolitical pressures.Seeking Alpha Tech
WORLDOct 6Elderly man found dead, wife hospitalised after smell reported at Hong Kong flatAn elderly man was found dead and his wife was taken to hospital after authorities responded to a report of a foul smell from a flat in Hong Kong on Tuesday. Authorities received a report at about 5.20pm from security staff at One Madison, a residential building on Castle Peak Road in Cheung Sha Wan, after an unusual odour was detected from the flat and the occupants had not been seen for some time. Firefighters were called to the scene and forced entry into the flat. The man was found in the...South China Morning Post
WORLDOct 6Greenpeace catches Hong Kong geopark ‘golden week’ visitors damaging marine lifeAbout 100 incidents of visitors catching sea cucumbers and digging up sea snails and clams were recorded at a popular spot in Hong Kong’s Unesco-listed geopark on a single day of the National Day “golden week”, a green group has found, following similar incidents last year. The Po Pin Chau section of the High Island Geo Trail in Sai Kung was also strewn with rubbish on a separate day, Greenpeace said on Tuesday. At nearby Long Ke Beach, the group recorded nearly 90 instances of environmentally...South China Morning Post
DISASTERBREAKINGOct 6Fire breaks out on rooftop of residential building in Hong Kong’s Mong KokFirefighters are battling a rooftop blaze at a residential building in Hong Kong’s Mong Kok, with thick black smoke billowing into the sky. The Fire Services Department received a report at about 5.20pm on Tuesday that items stored on the rooftop of the 26-storey Block B at the Shun King Building on Nelson Street had caught fire. No casualties had been reported as of 7pm, while some residents self-evacuated the building. Firefighters were tackling the blaze with one water jet. Strong flames and...South China Morning Post
WORLDOct 6Hong Kong’s Generation Y unhappiest amid housing and economic pressures, poll findsHong Kong’s Generation Y residents – those aged 30 to 45 – are the city’s unhappiest age group, largely because of dissatisfaction with economic and housing conditions, a poll has found. The Hong Kong Happiness Index stood at 5.87 out of 10, according to a survey of 1,039 adults conducted by HK.WeCare, an initiative under non-profit organisation Wofoo Social Enterprises. The score remained below the passing level for a fourth consecutive year, despite an overall upward trend since 2024. More...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSOct 6Hong Kong remains world’s freest economy as Switzerland overtakes SingaporeHong Kong has retained its status as the world’s freest economy in the latest annual ranking by a top Canadian think tank, although its score has declined in recent years. Switzerland overtook Singapore to claim second place, pushing the city state down to third in the rankings released on Tuesday by the Fraser Institute. The 2026 Economic Freedom of the World report, compiled by the Vancouver-based public policy research organisation using data from 2024, ranked Hong Kong first among 165...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSOct 6Moonshot AI eyes Hong Kong IPO after $50 billion valuation as DeepSeek raises capitalChinese AI start-up Moonshot AI is targeting for a Hong Kong listing in early 2027 after its valuation hit $50 billion (€44.6bn), while rival DeepSeek is raising between ¥80 billion (€10.6bn) and ¥100 billion (€13.3bn) in a round led by Tencent and CATL, fuelling bets on its own market debut.EuroNews [en]
BUSINESSOct 6China’s Transsion, Africa’s top phone maker, targets US$500 million Hong Kong listingShenzhen Transsion Holdings, the maker of Africa’s bestselling phones, aims to kick off its Hong Kong share offering on Wednesday to raise up to US$500 million ahead of a targeted October 15 listing, according to people familiar with the matter. The company, which already trades in Shanghai and has a market capitalisation of 62 billion yuan (US$9.24 billion), could offer up to 132 million offshore ordinary shares, according to approval documents from the China Securities Regulatory Commission...South China Morning Post
POLITICSOct 6House China committee chair urges Fed to review Hong Kong’s access to dollar lifelineRep. John Moolenaar wants the Fed to rethink Hong Kong’s access to a dollar-liquidity facility as China promotes the renminbi as a global currency.CNBC
POLITICSOct 6Hong Kong prepares reforms, accountability measures ahead of Tai Po fire reportHong Kong authorities have made “a series of preparations” to implement reforms and pursue accountability ahead of the Tai Po fire inquiry panel’s final report due later this month, the city’s leader said, pledging to act “as soon as possible”. The government reportedly established a dedicated task force under the Public Service Commission, led by former commissioner for sports George Tsoi Kin-pan and former deputy secretary for security Benjamin Mok Kwan-yu, to investigate alleged official...South China Morning Post
POLITICSOct 6Hong Kong leader pledges tougher rules, penalties to deter construction violationsHong Kong will strengthen its regulatory regime and impose stiffer penalties to ensure strong deterrence against building violations, the city leader has pledged, following a series of substandard construction scandals including the latest controversy involving a luxury residential development in Stanley. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu vowed to safeguard the high professional standards of the city’s construction industry on Tuesday in the wake of a debacle involving a house at One Stanley,...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSOct 6Hong Kong’s big IPO haul–South China Morning Post
BUSINESSOct 6Hong Kong quizzes HSBC over Singapore AI hub decisionMonetary authority strives to bolster Chinese territory’s status as international financial capitalFinancial Times
BUSINESSOct 6Hong Kong’s bridge of gold completes China’s yuan ambitionBeijing’s push to accumulate gold serves a larger goal: yuan internationalisation. In this series, Part I traces China’s path to becoming a gold superpower, while this article explores Hong Kong’s key role in safeguarding the nation’s financial security. In 2013, one-third of the world’s traded gold passed through Hong Kong. That year, the city imported 1,158 tonnes of bullion, overtaking India, the traditional top buyer. For all our love of the glittering metal, little of it stayed in our...South China Morning Post
WORLDOct 6Hong Kong temperatures drop to 23 degrees Celsius on Tuesday morning, lowest this autumnTemperatures in Hong Kong dropped to about 23 degrees Celsius (73 Fahrenheit) on Tuesday morning, the lowest so far this autumn. According to the Hong Kong Observatory, the cooler weather was caused by a dry northeast monsoon. “A dry northeast monsoon will bring mainly fine weather to the coast of Guangdong in the next couple of days. It will be windier and slightly cooler in the morning over the region,” the forecaster said. “The monsoon is expected to moderate slightly in the latter part of...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSOct 5Russian gold floods Hong Kong as Western sanctions redraw bullion tradeThe surge underscores how Russia's gold trade has been rerouted after its invasion of Ukraine in 2022 shut its producers out of major Western markets.CNBC
BUSINESSOct 5How a Hong Kong property investor still made US$30 million – after a 40% price cutAmid concerns over rising interest rates and a weak retail property market, a long-time investor has sold a portfolio of prime street shops in Tsim Sha Tsui – held for more than four decades – and locked in a profit of nearly HK$237 million (US$30.2 million) despite accepting a deal more than 40 per cent below his original asking price. The portfolio of retail shops in Cheung Lee Commercial Building and the podium of Wing Lee Building, both on Kimberley Road, changed hands for HK$256.8 million,...South China Morning Post
POLITICSOct 5Hong Kong must scrap housing plan and preserve golf courseThe hotly contested court battle over government plans to build 12,000 public flats on Hong Kong’s oldest golf course has played its final round. The government decided not to appeal against a ruling that held its approval of an environmental impact assessment (EIA) report on the project to be unlawful. This is better than pursuing a further attempt to persuade the courts to uphold a fatally flawed process. Now, a broader review of the plans can be undertaken in light of the Court of Appeal’s...South China Morning Post
POLITICSOct 5Bid to turn 14 subsidised Hong Kong sale flats into subdivided homes raises abuse concernsThe owners of 14 subsidised sale flats have applied for a grace period to comply with Hong Kong’s new regulatory regime for subdivided homes, the housing minister has revealed, raising concerns that public resources were being abused. The cases were disclosed on Monday at a Legislative Council housing panel meeting when lawmaker Mark Chong Ho-fung asked Secretary for Housing Winnie Ho Wing-yin about the use of subsidised sale flats as subdivided units for renting. Chong said flats sold under the...South China Morning Post
HEALTHOct 5Hong Kong IVF clinic cleared to resume all services after embryo specimen mix-upA Hong Kong fertility clinic that had most of its services suspended for mishandling embryo biopsy specimens from two patients has been cleared to fully resume all treatments after implementing improvement measures. The Council on Human Reproductive Technology said on Monday that Heal Fertility in Central could resume all 17 treatment services covered by its licence from Tuesday, after members reviewed the findings of a follow-up inspection and confirmed the clinic had properly implemented the...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSOct 5Mainland Chinese arrivals to Hong Kong surged at start of ‘golden week’ holidayMainland Chinese arrivals to Hong Kong surged at the start of the National Day “golden week” holiday before easing towards last year’s levels, with a lawmaker attributing the early rush partly to the city’s fireworks display and tourists making the most of a shorter break. Immigration Department figures showed that 277,304 mainland visitors arrived on October 1, up 19.1 per cent from 232,751 on the first day of last year’s holiday and 25.1 per cent from the 221,644 recorded in 2024. “The...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSOct 5Adrian Cheng, former scion of Hong Kong’s NWD, expands K11 brand in XiamenAdrian Cheng Chi-kong, former heir apparent to Hong Kong’s New World Development (NWD), is expanding his K11 cultural retail business in mainland China, launching a venture of his own as his family’s property group grapples with heavy debt. Xiamen K11 Select, developed by Cheng’s K11 by AC Group along with state-owned Xiamen Rail Transit Group in the city in the southeastern province of Fujian, has attracted more than 2 million visits since its opening on September 22, with sales rising 32 per...South China Morning Post
POLITICSOct 5Hong Kong lawmakers say 5-year tax incentive too short to entice major innovative firmsHong Kong lawmakers have backed the government’s proposed tax incentives for large innovative companies, but many said on Monday that the planned five-year concession period is too short to attract major firms to establish headquarters or expand operations in the city. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu in his policy address last month said the government planned to submit a bill introducing preferential profits tax rates of either 5 per cent or 8.25 per cent, which was half of the city’s standard...South China Morning Post