Society

On a typical Sunday evening, Jack Kwan from Hong Kong, 32, is waiting to be seated at a well-known hot pot restaurant in Shenzhen.  During peak dining hours, crowds gather at the restaurant’s entrance to look at the menu. They wait patiently until their queue number is called. Kwan sips on the chrysanthemum tea, commonly known as pu’er tea, provided by the restaurant for those who are waiting to be seated. “I feel time passes faster when queuing here with tea provided. It is much more relaxing. We do not experience this level of convenience while queuing in Hong Kong,” he said. Kwan goes to Shenzhen to try out different cuisines once or twice a month. After COVID-19, heading north to eat has become a popular trend for Hongkongers on weekends.  Shenzhen restaurants often offer lower prices, which attracts more Hong Kong diners and makes them more competitive than restaurants in Hong Kong, especially during weekends and holidays. In 2024, over 52 million Hong Kong residents travelled through Lo Wu Port, one of the 16 border checkpoints connecting the two cities, an increase of 68% compared to the previous year, according to the Hong Kong Immigration Department. Jason Wu, 26, who went to Shenzhen for the first time during the recent Lunar New Year holidays, said the disparities in income and consumption levels in the two cities make cross-border dining a better choice for him.  “Hong Kong has a higher wage level and a stronger consumption capacity than Shenzhen, but Shenzhen’s price level is lower than Hong Kong,” he said. Government data shows that the median monthly wage for a Hongkonger was HK$19,800 in 2023. On the ranking of cost of living of cities worldwide, Hong Kong tops the list while Shenzhen ranks 34th, according to Mercer’s report.  “I am …

Tang Ho-wing, 36, is an independent journalist running the news outlet, “boomheadhk”, on social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram. The page mostly covers local and international political issues, and has attracted over 22,700 followers. “Hongkongers' news consumption habits have shifted. Increasingly, they want to consume content not covered by the mainstream media or specialised content that features unique views,” Tang said. The main purpose of his outlet is to supplement the mainstream media and offer readers new insights on social issues. Tang’s outlet relies on readers’ donations to cover the cost of his reporting work. “When people want to read more specialised and unique reporting, or lesser-known content, they are willing to pay,” Tang said. According to Reuters Institute Digital News Report, in an online survey of 2,000 respondents in Hong Kong, only 18% said they pay to access news online in 2024, down from the peak of 29% in 2020. The report added that because the public’s news consumption habits have changed and advertising revenue has declined, media organisations that struggle in adapting to the rapid change have reported financial losses. Hong Kong Free Press, an independent non-profit news media that relies on readers’ donations, reported a HK$1.4 million loss in 2023, according to its annual report. HKFP has 895 regular monthly donors as of 2023. Damon Wong Chun-pong, Chief Editor of InMedia, a local online independent news outlet, said his outlet did not experience significant financial losses. “The drop in paid readership following 2020 is a full picture that includes the closure of mainstream media outlets, such as Apple Daily and Stand News,” said Wong. “By comparison, our readership didn’t drop a lot.” He said some readers follow other small and new news outlets after some closure of some of the mainstream outlets. The newcomers include …