[Introduction] The latest announcement from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority China Fund News reporter Ivan On December 4, Hong Kong stocks surged higher in early trading, but fell back again in the afternoon, and ended up with mixed gains. As of the close, the Hang Seng Index clo

[Introduction] The latest announcement of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority

China Fund News reporter Ivan

On December 4, Hong Kong stocks rose in early trading, but fell back again in the afternoon, and ended up with mixed gains. As of the close, the Hang Seng Index closed at 19742.46 points, down 0.02%; the Hang Seng State-owned Enterprises Index closed at 7085 points, up 0.18%; the Hang Seng Technology Index closed at 4404.04 points, down 0.32%.

On the market, large technology stocks generally fell. Kuaishou fell nearly 3%, Jingdong fell 2%, Baidu , Alibaba , Tencent , Meituan all closed down, but NetEase rose by about 2%; education stocks generally rose, with online education leader New Oriental rising by 5%; semiconductor stocks rose, Cantron rose by more than 5%, China Electronics Technology , Solomon Semiconductor rose by more than 2% %, Hongguang Semiconductor, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation, etc. followed suit; oil stocks and coal stocks were active, and heavyweight stocks such as China Coal Energy, China Shenhua, and PetroChina all rose.

Photovoltaic stocks fell, Rainbow New Energy fell more than 5%, GCL Technology and Xinte Energy fell more than 4%, Flat Glass and Xinyi Solar followed suit; pharmaceutical stocks weakened, Rongchang Biotech fell more than 8%, Kangfang Biotech fell more than 5%. 

The latest announcement from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority

On December 4, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (hereinafter referred to as the HKMA) issued guidelines to banks to launch a one-time special arrangement that allows for the relaxation of the maximum mortgage loan ratio and the "payment-to-income ratio" limit. Regulatory requirements so that banks can flexibly assist users of off-the-plan residential properties who have chosen construction installment payments from 2021 to 2023 to complete property transactions.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority pointed out that in the past three years, official residential property prices have dropped by more than 25% from their high levels. Some users who purchase pre-construction residential properties and choose to pay in the construction period may encounter the situation where the property appraisal is lower than the transaction price when applying for a mortgage loan, and face additional difficulties in raising the down payment. At the same time, some banks expressed to the Hong Kong Monetary Authority that they hope to help these users who have practical difficulties while the risks are controllable.

After balancing considerations from all aspects, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority believes that on the premise that the risks of banks’ property mortgage loan business are properly managed, a one-time special arrangement can be launched to assist users who purchase pre-construction residential properties with construction installment payments during the peak period of the property market. Under this special arrangement, banks can provide mortgage loans of up to 80% to eligible users, and increase the upper limit of the "payment-to-income ratio" to 60%.

This special arrangement covers self-occupied uncompleted residential properties with provisional sale and purchase contracts signed between January 1, 2021 and December 31, 2023, with construction period payments, and the mortgage application date for the relevant properties is today or later. In addition, the property valuation when applying for a mortgage must be lower than the transaction price.

Since the mortgage terms of each bank are different, eligible applicants should inquire with banks that provide special arrangements as soon as possible if they have needs or questions.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority has repeatedly reminded prospective buyers of off-the-plan residential properties that they need to pay attention to the risks involved when choosing a construction installment payment plan. The above-mentioned special arrangement is actually a one-time special arrangement provided to users who purchased uncompleted properties with installment payments during the peak of the property market in recent years and faced additional difficulties in raising the first installment. Banks still need to operate the property mortgage business prudently.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority would like to once again remind prospective buyers who plan to choose construction installment payments that if the market value of uncompleted residential properties has dropped compared with the transaction price, banks will use the property valuation at the time of mortgage loan application to calculate the loan amount, so the final loan will be approved The amount will be less than the buyer originally expected, and the buyer will need to bear the risks associated with being unable to raise additional down payment. Before making a home purchase decision and choosing a payment plan, members of the public must carefully assess the financial risks involved and act within their means.

Jingtai Technology soared by more than 26%

On the news, at the recent 2024 IDEA Conference hosted by the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Digital Economy Research Institute (hereinafter referred to as IDEA Research Institute), well-known artificial intelligence expert Shen Xiangyang introduced a series of IDEA Research Institute’s cutting-edge research and development based on AI technology. Industrial implementation results, including the official launch of patsight, a large multi-modal model of chemical literature launched in cooperation with Jingtai Technology.

Produced by: Joey

Editor: Green