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POLITICSSep 22Hong Kong to bar firms with integrity offences from building renovation listsHong Kong building maintenance consultants and contractors prosecuted or convicted of integrity-related offences in the past three years will be excluded from pre-qualified lists set up for owners undertaking renovation projects, the development minister has said. Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn Hon-ho said on Tuesday that applications to join the lists – covering inspection consultants, supervision consultants and building works contractors – would open next Wednesday and close on...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSSep 22Hong Kong bans caterer from importing workers for a year over local hiring breachHong Kong’s Labour Department has terminated Kwai Chung-based catering firm Happy Up Corporation’s application to import workers after it failed to meet the required local hiring ratio. The company has also been barred from applying to import workers for a year. A department spokesman said on Tuesday that the administrative sanctions had taken immediate effect under the Enhanced Supplementary Labour Scheme (ESLS) following an application previously submitted by the company. He added that...South China Morning Post
HEALTHSep 22Free sports drinks with suspicious pinhole marks leave 10 Hong Kong students illAbout 10 students reportedly fell ill after drinking free beverages that were found with suspicious pinhole marks near a sports ground in Hong Kong, prompting a police investigation. Students reportedly posted messages on social media claiming that free bottles of a sports drink had been handed out during lunch near the school athletics meet at Hammer Hill Road Sports Ground in Wong Tai Sin. Some students later noticed what appeared to be pinhole marks on the bottles, and a parent called police...South China Morning Post
POLITICSSep 22No need for Hong Kong to match Singapore’s HK$400,000 birth perk, top official saysHong Kong does not need to emulate Singapore’s generous childbirth incentives, a senior official has said, defending the city’s latest 11-measure policy drive as a “comprehensive” approach tailored to local needs across short-term cash flow, housing and childcare. Addressing concerns that Hong Kong’s drive was too incremental compared with Singapore’s multi-tier sustained funding, Deputy Chief Secretary Warner Cheuk Wing-hing said on Tuesday that each jurisdiction has its own unique set of...South China Morning Post
WORLDSep 22Hong Kong lacks a climate narrative to unify its effortsHong Kong deserves credit for its first five-year plan, accompanied by a detailed policy address. The plan establishes a useful framework beyond the annual policy cycle. Precisely because this is an important first effort, it is worth asking what could make the framework even stronger. One striking omission is that the five-year plan never explicitly mentions climate change. This does not mean Hong Kong is failing to act. On the contrary, the plan and policy address contain many measures dealing...South China Morning Post
MILITARYSep 22Australia investigates after F-35 fighter jet parts bound for US land up in Hong KongThe Independent World
WORLDSep 22Indefinite time in psychiatric ward for Hong Kong man who fatally stabbed 2 in mallA Hong Kong man suffering from a severe mental illness has been sentenced to an indefinite period in a psychiatric hospital for stabbing two women to death in a frenzied knife attack at a shopping centre three years ago. The High Court on Tuesday ordered former warehouse worker Szeto Sing-kwong to receive mandatory psychiatric treatment and supervision at the Siu Lam Psychiatric Centre in Tuen Mun, noting that he continued to display limited insight into his mental condition after killing two...South China Morning Post
POLITICSSep 22How Hong Kong can keep the talking going when US-China officials don’tWhen Tung Chee-hwa died, the obituaries predictably described a Hong Kong shipping mogul who became the city’s first postcolonial chief executive. How his government navigated the Asian financial crisis and severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars) epidemic and its retreat from Article 23 were highlighted. There was less attention paid to the political hybrid he embodied. Tung sat as vice-chairman of China’s top political advisory body, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference,...South China Morning Post
WORLDSep 22Hong Kong animal groups call for tighter pet laws after suspected fatal maulingAnimal welfare groups in Hong Kong have called for closing a legal loophole in pet ownership laws to better protect public safety, as authorities pledged to review stray dog policies following Sunday’s suspected fatal mauling of a woman. The groups suggested that, based on their experience, the 27-year-old victim was likely attacked by former warehouse guard dogs rather than strays. But existing legal provisions make it difficult to prosecute owners who fail to microchip or properly secure their...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSSep 22Despite higher costs, Hong Kong’s student residences attract mainland Chinese rentersPurpose-built student accommodation is drawing mainland Chinese university students away from Hong Kong’s traditional rental market, as professionally managed residences gain favour despite charging higher rents than many private flats. Some students said dedicated student housing offered greater convenience, stronger security, more predictable costs and a better living environment, helping offset higher rents and, in some cases, longer commutes. Qi Zhonghao, a mainland Chinese student pursuing...South China Morning Post
CYBERSep 21AI poses new national security threat, outgoing Hong Kong deputy police chief warnsRetiring deputy police commissioner Andrew Kan Kai-yan has said artificial intelligence (AI) poses a new threat to national security in Hong Kong, with the force turning to the emerging technology to help combat the issue. Kan raised the alarm after state security minister Chen Yixin warned last week of rising national security risks posed by AI. The senior mainland Chinese official also called for robust risk prevention frameworks and stronger global governance of the technology. Chief...South China Morning Post
POLITICSSep 21Hong Kong school withdraws graduation video guideline on Cantonese after backlashA leading Hong Kong secondary school has expressed regret and withdrawn guidelines accused of banning Cantonese from graduation videos after the policy sparked controversy. Good Hope School issued a public statement on Monday evening, saying it had heard concerns from the wider community and had “fully and formally withdrawn” the guidance paper for next year’s Form Six graduation class video. “Good Hope School wishes to state unequivocally that it has never been our ethos to constrain the mother...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSSep 21Foreign chambers back Hong Kong 5-year plan, urge progress on Northern MetropolisRepresentatives of foreign business chambers who met Hong Kong’s leader have said the five-year plan provided clear policy priorities for companies’ strategic planning, but called for more concrete timelines and visible progress on the Northern Metropolis project to attract investment. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu held a briefing on Monday for consuls general and heads of foreign chambers of commerce, during which he stressed that Hong Kong’s five-year plan was not a planned economy. The...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSSep 21Hong Kong developer New World gets nod to spin off K11 Shanghai assetsNew World Development (NWD) received the green light from the Shanghai Stock Exchange to spin off and list a Reit (real estate investment trust) on the bourse, according to the distressed developer controlled by one of Hong Kong’s wealthiest families. The expected offering size for the NWD C-Reit was about 3.82 billion yuan (US$570 million), from which the group’s estimated net proceeds would be 3.24 billion yuan, Hong Kong-based NWD said in a statement on Monday. The underlying assets of the...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSSep 21Hong Kong sets out strategies to enhance the appeal and add value to the city tourism industry – LiveNews . co . nzlivenews.co.nz · New Zealand
CYBERSep 21Hong Kong woman, 80, loses HK$6 million to fake online investment expertAn 80‑year‑old woman has lost HK$6 million (US$764,772) to a fake investment expert she met online, Hong Kong police have disclosed. The case was among more than 50 investment scams reported over the past week, with total losses approaching HK$30 million, according to a post on the force’s CyberDefender social media page. The victim, a retiree, first met the fraudster posing as an investment expert on Facebook before moving their conversations to WhatsApp, where the suspect built a relationship...South China Morning Post
WORLDSep 21Hong Kong Ballet to move to city’s first dedicated dance venue in 2027Hong Kong Ballet will relocate to the city’s first dedicated dance art venue for at least five years, starting in April 2027, according to the institution and the West Kowloon Cultural District (WKCD). The move to the “Dancehouse” at the soon-to-be-finished WestK Performing Arts Centre will follow the ballet company’s departure from its base of 16 years at the government-run Cultural Centre in Tsim Sha Tsui. An announcement last December that the city’s flagship ballet company would be departing...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSSep 21Once the world’s most-visited city, Hong Kong now converts hotels into student dormsLate last month, an open tender for Hotel Cozi Harbour View in Kwun Tong was announced, with interested parties given until October 15 to submit bids. The 598-room hotel, located in Hong Kong’s eastern Kowloon Peninsula, a former industrial area, was taken over by Nanyang Commercial Bank for HK$1.87 billion (US$238.4 million) in 2025, with the bank now looking to dispose of the asset to the highest bidder. Just a week after the announcement of the tender, Nina Hospitality, one of the largest...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSSep 21Over 11,000 applicants for new Hong Kong taxi, ride-hailing testMore than 11,000 residents have applied to take the joint examination for taxi and ride-hailing car driver permits, exceeding the Hong Kong government’s expectations, the city’s transport minister has said. Secretary for Transport and Logistics Mable Chan also gave more details on Monday about a separate scheme that would allow mainland Chinese yacht owners to sail their vessels into city waters, saying they had achieved a good passing rate for the relevant test. Hong Kong recently passed...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSSep 21Mainland China’s stock exchanges mount charm offensive amid Hong Kong IPO boomMainland China’s stock exchanges have stepped up lobbying of companies and regulators to prioritise domestic listings after Hong Kong stole their thunder in fundraising activities in recent years, according to two sources familiar with the matter. The domestic exchanges recently met representatives of some mainland companies planning Hong Kong listings, especially first-time issuers and firms in sectors supported by national policies, a source said. “Exchanges emphasised the benefits of listing...South China Morning Post
WORLDSep 21Nearly 50% rise in drug seizures by Hong Kong customs in first half of yearHong Kong customs recorded a nearly 50 per cent year-on-year rise in drug seizures during the first half of 2026, driven by notable increases in smuggling activities via air and sea routes. The Customs and Excise Department confiscated 5,704kg (12,575lbs) of illegal narcotics in the first half, a 49 per cent increase year on year, according to figures seen by the South China Morning Post. Nearly two-thirds of the seized narcotics, or 3,408kg, were found at the airport, a 46.6 per cent...South China Morning Post
POLITICSSep 20Barristers dismiss calls for solicitors to gain senior counsel status in Hong KongThe professional body for Hong Kong barristers has dismissed as “premature and largely academic” calls by solicitors for legal changes so fellow lawyers can gain recognition as senior counsel and rights to represent clients in higher-level courts. The Law Society, the governing body for the city’s solicitors, is calling for the higher status for its members as lawmakers scrutinise the latest round of omnibus legislative updates in Hong Kong. But the Bar Association, the body for barristers,...South China Morning Post
BUSINESSSep 20For China’s hi-tech IPOs, it’s Hong Kong vs the mainland – but how much does it matter?Competition between mainland China and Hong Kong for hi-tech initial public offerings presents emerging technology firms with a dual-track strategic choice rather than a zero-sum battle, according to an executive at a national cross-border innovation platform. “There is naturally a degree of competition,” Lu Peng, general manager of Beijing-based Zhongguancun International, said in an interview on Thursday, referring to how tech firms select their primary listing venue. “However, the two markets...South China Morning Post
HEALTHSep 20Keralam doctors selected to present research at UICC World Cancer Congress in Hong KongDoctors from Keralam have been selected to present their research at the UICC World Cancer Congress in Hong Kong. This highlights their contribution to global cancer research.The Hindu