News
Tolls for two Hong Kong cross-harbour tunnels will increase to HK$30 from August 2, charges for Western Tunnel will decrease to HK$60
- 2023-03-22
- Society
- By: Kei Tung LAMEdited by: Ming Min AW YONG
- 2023-03-22
To alleviate long-standing traffic flow issues, the Hong Kong government proposed a new toll plan for three cross-harbour tunnels in two stages. Chan Sai-hung, the Secretary for Transport and Logistics, said that under the first stage, starting from August 2, tolls for private cars using the Western Harbour Crossing will be lowered from HK$75 to HK$60. Also, the tolls for the Cross-Harbour Tunnel and the Eastern Harbour Crossing will be increased from HK$20 to HK$30 and from HK$25 to HK$30, respectively. Taxi fares will be standardized at HK$25 per trip for all three tunnels to discourage empty taxis from concentrating on lower-priced return trips through the Cross-Harbour and Eastern Harbour Crossings. "The lower toll rate for the Western Harbour Tunnel would encourage me to use it more often," Chan, a private car driver, said. He said that the higher toll rates for the other tunnels could help distribute traffic evenly across all three tunnels. However, not all drivers are happy with the proposed changes. Sze, a private car driver and a frequent user of the Eastern Harbour Tunnel, said that the toll increase would add to his monthly expenses. "The new charges are just a disguised increase in fares," he said. Under the proposed second stage, which is expected to start latest by the end of this year, the government plans to implement different charging schemes for different time periods. During "non-peak hours", 7 pm to 7.30 am, from Monday to Saturday nights, the three tunnels will charge a flat rate of HK$20 for private cars. In the morning and evening "peak hours", the fee is HK$60 for the Western Harbour Tunnel and HK$40 for the Cross-Harbour and Eastern Harbour Crossings. On Sundays and public holidays, private cars will be charged at a flat rate of HK$20 to HK$25, depending …
Hong Kong blooms in joy as annual flower show returns after three-year hiatus
- 2023-03-20
- Society
- By: James Ezekiel Kalaw MODESTOEdited by: Tsz Yin HO
- 2023-03-20
As the city welcomes spring, swarms of people flocked to Victoria Park to celebrate the return of the annual Hong Kong Flower Show in Causeway Bay. The event has been cancelled since 2020 due to the safety concerns over the virus. This year’s theme was “Bliss on Bloom”, featuring 40,000 hydrangeas as the theme flower, along with some 400,000 flowers, according to the LCSD. Accompanying the flowers were attractions built by several government departments and the 18 district councils, along with other organisations, including the Philippine Consulate-General and the Guangzhou local government. The returning Hong Kong Flower Show garnered hundreds of people, including families, schools and tour groups. The 2023 Hong Kong Flower Show started on Mar. 10 and ended on Mar. 19.
Hong Kong’s unemployment rate drops to 3.3% on the path to full recovery
- 2023-03-17
- Business
- By: Man TSE、Kin Hou POONEdited by: Le Ha NGUYEN、Rex Cheuk、Yixin Gao
- 2023-03-17
Hong Kong’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate edged lower to 3.3% in the rolling period from December 2022 to February 2023, amid the full reopening aroused the labour market, according to the data released by the Census and Statistics Department. Hong Kong’s unemployment rate has shown a tenth-month decreasing trend since April 2022. The latest figure marked a 0.1 percent decrease from the prior period between last November and this January. The number of seasonally adjusted unemployed persons declined by around 2,700 to 115,700, while the underemployment rate dropped by 0.1 percentage point to 1.3%, with the number of underemployed people decreasing by 4,200 to 47,900. "The labour market conditions should improve further in the near term alongside the continued return of economic activities to normalcy and the rebound in inbound tourism," said Chris Sun Yuk-han, the Secretary for Labor and Welfare. The combined unemployment rate of the retail, accommodation and food services sectors slightly fell by 0.2 percentage point to 4.3%. The unemployment rate of the retail sector declined by 0.3 percentage point to 3.9%, while the food and beverage service activities sector edged down by 0.1 percentage point to 4.8%. The unemployment rates of many other sectors, particularly the transportation sector and the arts, entertainment and recreation sector, also accordingly decreased. Hong Kong has been resuming normalcy with the full border reopening with the Mainland. Beijing announced last month that mainland tourists can enter Hong Kong freely without quota limitations and reservations. Hong Kong also lifted the mask mandate, the last Covid restriction in the public area in Hong Kong, on March 1. “After cancelling different Covid prevention policies, more and more people are willing to consume and work outside, so the retail and catering industries are recovering,” said Yuen Wai-kee, the Assistant Professor of the Department of Economics …
Michelle Yeoh creates Asian women’s history with Oscar
- 2023-03-14
- Society
- By: Yuqi CHU、Yuhan WANGEdited by: Chengqi MO
- 2023-03-14
An 84-year-old woman sat in a theatre in Malaysia to watch the Oscars ceremony broadcast live on the big screen with tears in her eyes. On the screen, her 60-year-old daughter, Michelle Yeoh Choo-kheng held the Oscar and gave an acceptance speech at the 95th Academy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles. "For all the little boys and girls who look like me watching tonight, this is a beacon of hope and possibilities. This is proof that dreams dream big and dreams do come true,” Yeoh said, “and ladies, don't let anyone ever tell you you're past your prime.” Andy Vermaut shares:Oscars 2023: Michelle Yeoh's mum in tears as she celebrates historic victory: Michelle Yeoh becomes the first Asian woman to win the Academy Award for best actress. https://t.co/adctaYYqqs Thank you pic.twitter.com/F8YpXIQLqX — Andy Vermaut (@AndyVermaut) March 13, 2023 Yeoh’s mother cried for joy for her proud daughter winning the Oscar for best actress Malaysian-born Yeoh became the first actor of Asian descent to win the Academy Award for Best Actress for the action comedy Everything Everywhere All at Once, witnessed by the whole world at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood on Sunday night. The film tells the story of a middle-aged immigrant woman facing the problems of family and mid-life crisis while living a multiverse life. Yeoh has already won several awards for her performance in the movie, including a Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Award a few months ago. The film also took best picture, best supporting actor and actress at the Oscars. Yeoh expressed thanks especially to the Hong Kong film industry, which is the cradle of her acting career. Everything Everywhere All at Once pic.twitter.com/rPMOgd33T3 — The Cinegogue (@TheCinegogue) March 8, 2023 Stage photo in the movie Everything Everywhere All at Once “To my extended …
The 47th Hong Kong International Film Festival will open with Mad Fate and Elegies
- 2023-03-11
- Society
- By: Juncong SHUAI、Junzhe JIANG、Yuhan WANGEdited by: Wisha LIMBU
- 2023-03-11
The 47th Hong Kong International Film Festival is set to open on Mar 30 in person after a year of postponement with two movie premieres, Mad Fate and Elegies as the curtain-raiser. HKIFF47 is also in the “Hello Hong Kong” campaign from the government as an effort to rejuvenate the tourism industry after the pandemic. Hong Kong actor Aaron Kwok Fu-ching, ambassador for both the Hong Kong International Film Festival and was not able to attend the press conference on Friday. Directed by Cheang Pou-soi, Mad Fate is a noir thriller telling the story of a neurologist who attempts to change a delivery man's desire to kill while discussing the relationship between fate and instinct. Elegies is a lyrical documentary by Ann Hui On-wah portraying the landscapes of contemporary local poetry and showing the different personalities of those poets. The two movie premieres will open HKIFF47 at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre while Louis Koo Tin-lok’s Vital Sign will wrap up the festival on Apr 10. Wilfred Wong Yin-wai, the chairman of the Film Society, hopes that people from every industry would support the festival after the pandemic hampered Hong Kong movies from reaching overseas markets. “Hong Kong International Film Festival will act as a torch passing from generations to generations to revitalise Hong Kong’s film industry,” Wong said in the press conference. Soi Cheang will be the “Filmmaker-in-Focus” of the festival this year, he brought along his latest movie Mad Fate which was shown in the special screening unit at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival. Twelve works of Soi Cheang will be retrospected in the festival, featuring the aesthetic of violence with his strong personal style. Meanwhile, a series of products including special edition magazines will be published which the audience will be able to purchase whereas VIP …
ChatGPT should be encouraged in schools, says experts
- 2023-03-09
- Society
- By: Jemima BadajosEdited by: KOO Chi Tung 顧知桐
- 2023-03-09
Executives from local universities expressed their support towards the use of AI technologies in assignments at an AI summit, following a temporary ban on ChatGPT due to considerations of academic plagiarism in Hong Kong universities. The “Artificial-Human-Centred Summit” held at Hong Kong Baptist University on Monday, had academics gathered from different disciplines, including computer science, data science and communication. “ChatGPT can perform extremely well if you ask the right question,” said Guo Yike, Provost of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Guo supported the use of AI in education and called for funding to help teachers re-design lesson syllabus. He suggested rather than doing an answer-based assessment, teachers can check the quality of questions prompted into ChatGPT. “Getting the right answer will deduct much less intelligence than asking the right question,” he said. Martin Wong Ding-fat, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering at the Chinese University of Hong Kong also believes that ChatGPT can be beneficial to students. “ChatGPT allows students to work on projects that are bigger because the smaller units are already available,” said Wong. ChatGPT, a free AI chatbot developed by research and deployment company OpenAI, works by providing detailed responses to user prompts. It is currently used as a feedback tool to create safe and appropriate AI systems. Hong Kong has invested in artificial intelligence in recent years, such as introducing an AI learning module in secondary schools and setting up an ethical framework for AI and big data analytics. In the Budget Address this year, Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-Po also announced the launch of a feasibility study for a potential AI Supercomputing Centre, which will be completed in 2023-2024. But the audience at the Summit also expressed concerns about the regulation of AI and whether it will overtake human beings. “The more …
The Hong Kong Rugby Sevens 2023
- 2023-03-06
- Society
- By: Tsz Yau CHAN、Yau To LUMEdited by: Tsz In Warren LEUNG、Ka Ki FUNG
- 2023-03-06
The Hong Kong Rugby Sevens will be held in the Hong Kong Stadium from 31st of March to 2rd of April. This year is the first tournament after all COVID restrictions have been scrapped. The Hong Kong rugby team is looking forward to seeing rugby fans’ faces and making a comeback to their home field.
Young children adjusts to “new normal” after mask mandate ends
- 2023-03-04
- Society
- By: Jemima BadajosEdited by: Ming Min AW YONG
- 2023-03-04
The end of mask mandates on Wednesday brings hopes to improve children’s psychological development, as the COVID-19 pandemic caused a rise in speech problems and emotional recognition in children. The removal of mask requirements was announced by Chief Executive John Lee-Ka Chiu on Wednesday due to the “trend (of COVID-19 cases) and the fact that the winter surge (of influenza)” is ending. “We are starting to resume to normalcy comprehensively, and that will be very beneficial to economic development, our international competitiveness as well as our activities which involve everyone in Hong Kong,” he said. Mask-wearing had especially impacted the speech development and facial perception of children. The number of children under 12 newly diagnosed with speech and language development problems grew by 25% from 2019 pre-pandemic to 2021, according to the Department of Health. Phoebe Ber, 26, a teacher at Tiny Talent Professional English Learning Centre, says that mask-wearing had raised difficulties during the pandemic in learning pronunciation, especially for similar-sounding vowels M and N. Teachers also had to exaggerate their emotions more with their eyes and voices. “(The mask mandate) is a good thing because not only it helps the younger kids to see facial expressions, they also get to see the mouth movements and as well as improve what they need to improve,” said Ber. “Especially the kids who were born in 2019, who the moment they knew the world, they've just worn masks the entire time,” she said. Mask-wearing has also shown a decrease in holistic processing and facial processing abilities in children, according to a scientific study done in 2022. Participants who took the Cambridge Face Memory Test had about a 20% decrease in scores when asked to remember faces with masks compared to faces without them. Faith Wong, 32, is the mother of a …
Hong Kong’s mask mandate lifted after almost three years
- 2023-03-01
- Society
- By: Tsz Yin HOEdited by: Ming Min AW YONG
- 2023-03-01
Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu has announced scrapping the COVID-19 mask mandate starting today. The lift came into effect and Hongkongers and tourists are free to not wear masks on public transport, public indoor and outdoor areas and all scheduled premises, without fines. Hong Kong is believed to be the last place on the planet to end the mask-wearing mandate according to Lee. The mask mandate has lasted for 959 days. “In order to give people a very clear message that Hong Kong is resuming to normalcy, I think this is the right time to make this decision,” said Lee. The majority of people in the city are still wearing masks, especially in crowded areas such as public transport and commercial districts. “The demand for masks will still remain in the short run,” said Zita Cheung, a salesperson at a mask shop. She said that the business of her shop is significantly worse today, as very few customers visited. Currently, her shop is providing discounts for clearance sales and the shop is no longer restocking masks. However, mask-wearing is still required for entering venues regarded as high risk, according to Lee, including medical facilities, residential care and elderly homes. The government also suggests that people with weak immunity or chronic diseases should also wear a mask. Hong Kong has axed several other major controls in recent months, including mandatory quarantine for all arrivals, social distancing and vaccine requirements.
HUTCHMED records US$360.8 million annual loss by slow returns on drug investments
- 2023-02-28
- Society
- By: Nga Ying LAU、Ho Yi CHEUNGEdited by: Lok Yi CHU、Bella Ding
- 2023-02-28
HUTCHMED (China) Ltd (0013), a Hong Kong-based biopharmaceutical company, released its 2022 full-year results today, recording a net loss of US$360.8 million (about HK$2.8 billion) amid slow returns on drug investment. The operating loss climbed 24.2% to US$407.7 million (about HK$3.2 billion) affected by the increased input in research and development, driving the net loss up US$166.2 million (about HK$1.3 billion), or 85 %, year-over-year. “Our oncology and immunology operations have not generated profits and have operated at a net loss, as creating potential global first-in-class or best-in-class drug candidates requires a significant investment of resources over a prolonged period of time,” said Simon To Chi-keung, the Chairman of HUTCHMED, in the full-year results. Clinical studies and the development process of drugs were hampered in 2022 by hospital closures, travel restrictions and shipping difficulties resulting from COVID-19, according to the full-year results. The company’s revenue advanced by 19.7%, or US$70.3 million (about HK$548.3 million), to US$426.4 million (about HK$3.33 billion) in 2022, benefiting primarily from the sales of marketed products in its main businesses of oncology and immunology. It was then offset by the surge in research and development expenses of US$87.8 million (about HK$684.8 million) within the year. HUTCHMED announced its annual results after the market closed. Its stock price, increased by 2.4%, closed at HK$ 25.85 Tuesday. However, HUTCHMED’s stock price dropped 15% in February. “The significant return would not appear until the final stage of the drug development, which is concerned by shareholders,” said Alvin Cheung Chi-wai, the stock commentator at Prudential Brokerage Limited. HUTCHMED is developing another six anti-tumour drugs in early clinical trials and plans to enter registrational trials in 2023 and early 2024, while the company also reached a US$1.1 billion (about HK$8.6 billion) deal with Japan’s Takeda Pharmaceutical to license its colon cancer …