This is the 1676th issue of "Hong Kong in a Day"
Clean the house and treat guests
"Today is a historical moment for Hong Kong, a historical moment that Hong Kong has been waiting for 26 years, eight months and 19 days." Looking back on history, the Lee family is super accurate Counting every year, every month and every day since Hong Kong's return to the motherland, the constitutional responsibilities established long ago in Article 23 of the Basic Law have finally been implemented.
89 votes were in favor, 0 abstained, and 0 opposed. As the chairman of the seventh Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Leung Kwan-yin, read out the vote counting results, the "Maintenance of National Security Bill" officially completed the third reading legislative process. Relevant regulations and bills will officially come into effect after being signed by the Chief Executive and gazetted.
The Chief Executive of the Special Administrative Region, Lee Ka-chiu, entered the Legislative Council Chamber with light steps. He delivered a sonorous speech to the Legislative Council members and Hong Kong citizens present.
Although it is late, it is never too late for a good meal. Direct News believes that the legislative spirit of Article 23 of the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region takes "timeliness, timeliness and effectiveness" into consideration. Since it is up to the Hong Kong SAR to legislate on its own to fulfill its local responsibility for safeguarding national security, "consciousness, self-examination, and self-improvement" from the local level is the best legislative catalyst. In a word, it is precisely because the Hong Kong SAR has experienced ups and downs in the 26 years since its return to the motherland that it has been able to form a public opinion foundation that has learned from the pain, united as one, and given full support. The persuasive guidance and sincere words of the elders are often not as profound as the lessons learned by the young people themselves. Although
is late, it has been fully researched. "Thirteen thousand submissions, 25 legislative subcommittee meetings, more than 1,000 revised opinions on issues, and 91 amendments. The average review time for each article exceeds 50 hours." Li Jiachao specifically disclosed the details of the legislative process in his speech. , is the result of full research, full acceptance of advice, full debate, and full demonstration. Only with the sincere cooperation between the SAR Legislative Council, the Security Bureau and the Department of Justice, and the full support of patriots and Hong Kong people from all walks of life, can we realize the common vision of "getting the day sooner" and "no delay or haste".
has lived up to the central government’s trust and the country’s trust. This year marks the 10th anniversary of General Secretary Xi Jinping’s overall national security concept. The legislation of Article 23 of the Basic Law completed the Legislative Council procedures on this day, which will undoubtedly go down in history.
Li Jiachao said that the "Regulations on Safeguarding National Security" will be officially signed on March 23, and the bill will be officially implemented. On the 23rd, Article 23, Hong Kong went into battle with ease amid the great prosperity of the country and the people.
Clean the house before treating guests, and we will return Hong Kong to a bright and prosperous world.
Hong Kong’s GDP in the fourth quarter of last year increased by 4.3% year-on-year.
Hong Kong’s economic situation continues to improve. On March 19, the Census and Statistics Department of the Hong Kong Government released preliminary figures for GDP by economic activity in the fourth quarter of 2023 and the full year of 2023 in terms of physical volume. According to preliminary statistics, Hong Kong's overall GDP increased by 4.3% in real terms in the fourth quarter of 2023 compared with the same period last year, while the increase in the third quarter of 2023 was 4.1%. Comparing the whole year of 2023 with 2022, the GDP will increase by 3.2% in real terms. Among them, the added value of transportation, warehousing, postal and express delivery services, import and export trade, wholesale and retail, and accommodation and catering services is ahead of other industries, reaching 31.6%, 18.2% and 7.2% respectively. However, the added value of the financial and insurance industry fell by 0.5% in real terms in the fourth quarter of 2023 compared with the same period last year, while the decline in the third quarter was 1.1%. For the whole of 2023, the added value of this industry fell by 1.7% in real terms. %.
Picture source: Asdaq Finance
The trading volume of the Hong Kong property market has rebounded significantly after the "removal of spicy measures"
When the Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong SAR Government, Paul Chan Mo-po, announced the 2024/2025 budget at the end of last month, he announced the cancellation of all "hot policies" in the property market. This means that all residential property transactions will no longer have to pay additional stamp duty, buyer's stamp duty and new residential stamp duty. Taking a property with a total price of tens of millions (Hong Kong dollars, the same below) as an example, after the "removal", the tax paid by non-Hong Kong permanent residents has been reduced from at least 3 million yuan to 370,000 yuan.
The Hong Kong real estate market has returned to the era of "zero hot deals", and the cost of buying a house has dropped significantly. During the period after the "no hot deals" were withdrawn, the transaction volume of both new and second-hand houses has rebounded significantly, and most of the home buyers are mainland buyers.Experts analyze that the Hong Kong housing market may siphon off part of the purchasing power of cities in the Greater Bay Area such as Shenzhen and Guangzhou in the short term. If the housing market can become popular as a result, it may in turn lead to the stabilization and recovery of the housing market in the Greater Bay Area.
Many Hong Kong real estate agents said that although the Sheung Shui and Fanling areas belong to the north of Hong Kong, they are also located in the planned northern metropolitan area, so many mainland buyers also come to inquire. Since the "removal of hot property", there have been nearly 40 to 50 second-hand housing transactions in Sheung Shui and Fanling areas. Some real estate agents said that at the peak, it was equivalent to "doing one month's business in four days." After the Hong Kong real estate market "removed from the heat", the transaction volume at least doubled compared with the same period before the "removal from the heat", and most of the buyers were mainland buyers.
Source: Yahoo Finance
The Country Garden Longbi real estate in Kowloon City has welcomed a large number of mainland buyers after it was completely "removed". According to data provided by Longbi Real Estate, since the project went on sale in 2022, about 30% of the buyers have been new arrivals to Hong Kong, and after the comprehensive "removal of spicy food", this proportion has increased to 70%.
Hong Kong Centaline Real Estate data shows that since March, more than 2,000 first-hand new homes have been transacted in Hong Kong. It is expected that 4,000 to 5,000 units will be transacted in March, which is expected to hit a new high since November 1998. Among them, the number of inquiries from mainland buyers about buying properties in Hong Kong has increased 40 to 50 times, and many of them come through channels such as the "Talent Scheme".
In Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong, a mainland intermediary who is familiar with the Hong Kong market said, "Judging from the current situation, most mainland buyers will consider houses with a price of less than 8 million Hong Kong dollars. This part of the demand is semi-owner-occupied and semi-investment. It is expected that this After the wave of customers has been digested, the transaction volume of the entire market may have cooled down. In addition, although the Hong Kong property market is at a low level, some mainland buyers are still worried after taking into account the holding costs."
Hong Kong Airport opens new service Private Air passengers do not need to enter the country
Hong Kong International Airport held a media briefing on business and civil aviation direct transfer services today (19th). In the past, when a civil aviation aircraft came to Hong Kong to transfer to a commercial passenger aircraft (i.e. a private jet), they had to go through the arrival and entry procedures and baggage claim procedures, and then go to the Hong Kong Commercial Aviation Center to board the plane. The newly launched transfer service for commercial and civilian aircraft can transfer directly within the restricted area of the airport.
Source: Sing Tao Daily
Fang Ruiwen, deputy director of airport operations of the AA, said that the new service can save about one-third of the transfer time, and it only takes 30 to 50 minutes to complete the transfer and checked baggage business.
Hong Kong Commercial Aviation Center Deputy General Manager Zhang Meiyi said that in order to cooperate with the completion of the airport’s third runway system at the end of this year, the Hong Kong Commercial Aviation Center will simultaneously increase the overall capacity to meet the growing demand for business aviation. She pointed out that starting from 2025, the terminal space of the Commercial Aviation Center will be doubled and other new facilities will be gradually added. The facilities provided for transit passengers will be upgraded to enhance the experience of transit passengers.
Author丨Yang Ying, Chief Writer of Shenzhen Satellite TV Direct News
Editor丨Huang Haining, Executive Producer of Shenzhen Satellite TV Direct News
