Association France Hong Kong

Revue de presse du 6 septembre 2010

Secrétariat de l'Association — 2010-09-06T09:00:45Z

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CE dismisses 'reserves for poverty alleviation' suggestion : reports

The papers (4.9) in good coverage followed up on the criticisms from former LP chairman James Tien that the Government was turning a blind eye to the plight of the underprivileged, suggesting that it should tap into the reserves to alleviate poverty.

The proposal, however, was dismissed by CE Donald Tsang during a meeting with the party on Friday. He was quoted by the party as saying that the reserves were needed for defending the linked exchange rate and should not be touched. Ming Pao in headlines also said using the reserves to alleviate poverty might involve an amendment to the law.

While worrying that the economy might deteriorate at the end of the year and saying that it was necessary for the Government to « make hay while the sun shines », Mr Tsang reportedly denied that the authorities had failed to mete out any measures to improve people's livelihood in the past 10 years.

Financial Secretary John Tsang was also quoted by a few papers today as saying that the Government had already increased the spending for the underprivileged, adding that the reserves had always been catered to the needs of the public.

Philippine investigation team to speak to hostage incident survivors

The papers over the weekend accorded good coverage to the Manila hostage inquiry in the Philippines, with many (4.9) playing up in headlines that four HK hostages might have been killed by the Manila police during the rescue operation.

Reports (4.9) also noted that the Philippine Interior Undersecretary Rico Puno and police chief Jesus Verzosa had admitted errors in the hostage bloodbath.

The Philippine President Benigno Aquino, Manila police chief Rodolfo Magtibay and the crisis management team leader Manila mayor Alfredo Lim commanded the rescue operation in a Chinese restaurant where there was no TV, making it impossible for the commanders to grasp the fast-changing situation, the papers reported.

The papers yesterday and today widely noted the funerals of victims Fu Cheuk-yan and Tse Ting-chunn, which took place on Saturday and last night respectively. Mr Fu was buried in Tribute Garden in Wo Hop Shek.

Some papers today played up the point that the HK police would return three mobile phones from the crime scene to the Philippine authorities, which were mistakenly handed over to the HK team after the incident.

The police said in a statement that it had received a request from the Philippine authorities to help arrange meetings with the witnesses subject to their consent.

Govt to increase land supply through monthly auctions : FS

Ta Kung Pao and the HK Commercial Daily in their inside-page leads quoted FS John Tsang as saying in Beijing that the Government had adopted various measures to stabilise the property market and the most effective means was to increase land supply.

He noted that the Government had already put up land lots for auction each month, which would gradually increase the supply of housing units. He expected that about 61,000 units would be available in the coming three years.

City U's Lawrence Poon suggested that the Government should set up a consultative body comprised professionals, academics and members of political parties to map out policy initiatives on the supply of land and private properties.

Meanwhile, the SCMP said that the top six developers in HK had been withholding development projects that could provide flats totalling 42.6 million square feet of gross floor area when completed.

Poly U's Eddie Hui said as developers had massive land banks, they had full control of when and at what price level to sell their flats.

His colleague Lam Pun-lee said the Government should speed up its schedule to put land lots from the Kai Tak development and West Kowloon Cultural District for auction. He said a clear signal that the Government would soon sell a large area of land from those sites could be strong enough to adjust the market.

Some papers (4.9) in their leads and others in good coverage reported that a residential site at 3 and 5 Ede Road, Kowloon Tong, had been successfully triggered for sale with a minimum guaranteed bid of $1.053 million, after an adjacent plot was sold at a record-high price last week.

The HK Economic Times said in its headlines that the reserved bid was 37 per cent higher than that of the site sold last week and equated to $11,613 per square foot. The selling price of the site was expected to score a new high in the coming auction.

'CPG concerns about developers' excessive influence in CE selection process'

The HK Economic Journal in its front-page lead said the CPG was concerned about the excessive influencing power of property developers in the CE selection process, saying that over half of the current 800 Election Committee members could be influenced by developers.

Quoting sources, the paper said the CPG was of the view that the phenomenon had undermined social harmony and given rise to deep-rooted social conflicts. It hoped to take the opportunity of increasing the EC members to 1,200 in the CE election in 2012 to « dilute » developers' power.

Reports noted that the Central Authority had categorised the 38 EC sub-sectors into four groups : direct links with property developers ; other businesses operated by developers, including financial services and hotel sub-sectors ; sub-sectors that included members who had received donations from developers, such as higher education and medical sectors ; and indirect links with developers.

Mainland firms brace for rush of Taiwanese rivals

Cathy Chow Yin-man, a second-generation Hong Kong garment exporter in Dongguan, is racing to open four shops on the mainland before a throng of new competitors from Taiwan flood in.
The project manager of Cyclothing, which produces and exports clothes for Polo Ralph Lauren, DKNY and Calvin Klein, is among thousands of Hong Kong manufacturers that may be trying to open shops on the mainland ahead of newcomers from the other side of the strait.

The mainland and Taiwan signed the landmark economic co-operation framework agreement (ECFA) on June 29, liberalising bilateral trade and investments in areas such as the financial and services sectors. As a result, economists and industry observers say, Taiwanese businesses are set to pour into the mainland.

« Competition is strong enough when counting the numerous local players, » Chow said. « Newcomers from across the strait will make the situation worse. »
Chow and her three siblings are adjusting Cyclothing's business model to survive the rapidly evolving manufacturing sector in the Pearl River Delta.

Founded in 1985 by Chow's father, the exporter has expanded from simply producing fabric into making garments and has about 1,000 workers in Changan, a garment-making town in Dongguan.
During the past three years, Beijing has urged industries to « climb the value chain » and lift the technology level of their factories. In response, Cyclothing has ploughed an undisclosed sum into developing better fabrics and designing higher-end products. But moving up the value chain has not been enough to sustain the business in the face of labour shortages, soaring wages, tougher environmental rules and the appreciation of the yuan.

« We've seen many low-end kids' wear chain stores spring up from zero into 1,000 shops within a couple of years, » Chow said. « If these players, which offer poor-quality products, prosper, I don't see why we can't make it. »
Since July, Cyclothing has opened four high-end shops selling its children's wear collection, Rooki Kids, in Taiyuan (Shanxi province), Shanghai, Wuxi and Suzhou (Jiangsu province). A Rooki Kid's T-shirt can sell for as much as 1,000 yuan (HK$1,140).

But moving to the high end of the retail market has been a rough transition at times. The factory had had to adjust its production volumes, from tens of thousands of pieces for an export order to a hundred for retailing, Chow said.
It has also resisted the discounting trend to avoid jeopardising the brand image and its profitability.
Andy Lee Chi-hung, the chairman of the Hong Kong Brand for China Market Association, said that despite the challenges, the sooner Hong Kong exporters entered the robust mainland market, the better.
The trade pact adds « fresh pressure to Hong Kong entrepreneurs on the mainland », said Lee, a fashion retailer. « Hong Kong factories should not wait any longer - more rivals are pouring in. »
Lee set up Cocolulu, a high-end teenage casual wear chain, in 2004 on the mainland. He was among the first batch of investors to take advantage of the closer economic partnership arrangement, Hong Kong's free-trade pact with Beijing.

The ECFA grants Taiwanese greater access to the mainland's service sectors including insurance, financial services and consumer markets.
It reduces import tariffs on about 800 types of goods including agricultural, car and electronic products. The pact stipulates Beijing will lower tariffs on 539 imports from Taiwan valued at US$13.8 billion, or about 16 per cent of the island's exports to the mainland last year.

In return, Taiwan will cut tariffs on 267 items from the mainland worth US$2.86 billion, or about 10.5 per cent of the mainland's shipments to Taiwan last year.
Pauline Ngan Po-ling, a deputy chairman and managing director of cap-maker Mainland Headwear Holdings, has already felt the heat of intensifying competition.
Ngan and her husband, Ngan Hei-keung, the group's chairman, plan to make a stronger push into the mainland market by bringing Hello Kitty luggage and gifts to third-tier cities. They plan to open about 20 Gift Plaza stores, mostly franchises, in December and bring the total to at least 100 by the end of next year in Fujian province and central China. Products will be priced about 30 per cent lower than at the group's 94 Sanrio shops around the country.

But their strategy is the opposite of Cyclothing's. « We can't sell a piece of Hello Kitty luggage for 3,000 yuan in a third-tier city, » Pauline Ngan said. « Therefore, we have Gift Plaza as an alternative chain store for the mass market. »
While the expected increase in Taiwanese investors into the mainland sounds like bad news to many Hong Kong manufacturers, it is music to the ears of the Hyatt Regency Dongguan.

« We are as hungry for business as a hungry wolf, » the general manager of the five-star hotel, Du Zhongxuan, said. « We've seen visitor numbers [to the hotel] recover markedly since the beginning of this year. »
Located at the Song Shan Lake industrial zone of Dongguan, the hotel was hunting for corporate and leisure guests from nearby Shenzhen to Taiwan. Du said the hotel had about 40 per cent of its 320 rooms filled since the beginning of this year, with the occupancy expected to average 50 per cent for the rest of the year.
After the signing of the ECFA, the hotel received more Taiwanese visitors and foreign buyers.

Guangzhou Auto unveils its model

Newly listed Guangzhou Automobile Group has started producing its first home-grown model, the Trumpchi, which is made on the technological platform of Fiat's Alfa Romeo.
Trumpchi, which means miracle in Chinese, sells for about 15 per cent less than the 180,000 yuan (HK$205,250) Toyota Camry.

Guangzhou Auto, a joint-venture partner with Toyota and Honda, expects sales of Trumpchi to reach 30,000 units by next year.
« When we reach 60,000 units, the business will contribute to profits, » said Wu Song, vice-general manager of Guangzhou Auto.
« By 2015, total sales should be 300,000 units and production will be 400,000 units. »
An initial batch of about 500 units is to be delivered by December, just in time to serve as the official car of the 2010 Asian Games, which will be hosted in Guangzhou.

Other state-owned carmakers such as Shanghai's SAIC Motor and Hubei's Dongfeng Motor have rolled out their own models, such as the Roewe and the Fengshen.
Similar to SAIC Motor and Dongfeng, Guangzhou Auto is looking to launch mid-range cars.

The central government has urged mainland carmakers to develop their own models in order to compete with global players, which are seeing huge sales expansion on the mainland.
Since the 1980s, mainland carmakers have been teaming with foreign players to set up 50-50 joint ventures for technology transfers.
« I learned a lot from Toyota and Honda about how to manage a factory and nurture talent, » Wu said. That provided him with the knowledge to lead the effort to make the company's own model.
Hong Kong-listed Guangzhou Auto, which privatised subsidiary Denway Motor this month, was also eyeing a listing on the mainland's A-share market in three to five years, its top executives said.

Revue de presse du 3 septembre 2010

Secrétariat de l'Association — 2010-09-03T10:55:45Z

Sommaire

Follow up on Manila hostage incident

The papers continued to accord prominent coverage to follow up on the Manila hostage incident and played up various issues, including Legco's call for a change to emergency protocol, investigations by the Philippine police, return of HK forensic investigators from Manila and a memorial service for a hostage victim. Four papers gave the story lead treatment.

Reports noted that Legco yesterday passed a motion unanimously to urge the Government to render full assistance to the injured and family members of the deceased, formulate a contingency mechanism to deal with similar incidents in the future and proactively strive to directly take part in the Philippine authorities' investigations.

The HK Daily News in an inside-page lead highlighted the lawmakers' call for the Government to take the opportunity to clear obstacles to HK's dealings with other countries in emergencies.

A number of legislators, including Civic Party's Audrey Eu and Civic Act-up's Cyd Ho, supported CE Donald Tsang for calling the Philippine President Benigno Aquino on the day of the hostage-taking.

The Oriental Daily News and the SCMP in their front-page leads and others in good coverage reported that two HK police officers were questioned by the Philippine authorities because they were carrying a bag of empty shell casings from weapons used in the shoot-out when they prepared to board a flight back to HK.

The papers said the HK police team had sought clearance from the Philippine National Police to take the shell casings home as evidence for their inquiry but Department of Justice undersecretary Jose Salazar said the officers also needed clearance from his department.

One of the officers was allowed to board another flight later with the assistance of the Chinese Embassy in the country.

Meanwhile, Sing Pao in its front-page lead headlines and many other papers in their inside-page leads said some of the hostages might be killed by the Philippine police during the rescue operation.

Documents obtained by the Philippine broadcaster ABS-CBN News disclosed that 20 rounds of bullets were fired by the police into the tour bus where the hostages were held.

Sources said the police were trying to determine if any hostages were killed or wounded by the police bullets.

On criticisms that three coffins containing the bodies of the deceased had been wrongly labelled in Manila, the Philippine Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman said the Philippine authorities would offer an apology if an investigation found that it was their fault.

The memorial service for tour group leader Masa Tse also attracted prominent text and pictorial coverage in many papers. Acting CE Wong Yan Lung, Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Rita Lau and Commissioner for Tourism Philip Yung had attended the service, the papers added.

CE concludes three-day visit to Moscow

Tao Kung Pao in an inside-page lead and other papers in moderate coverage reported that CE Donald Tsang yesterday concluded his three-day official visit to Moscow.

Mr Tsang said the most significant achievement of the visit was to give Russian enterprises a clear picture that HK was the most important destination to set up regional headquarters in Asia.

Speaking at a business seminar in Moscow, he noted that HK provided a friendly and stable environment to serve as a capital-raising centre for Russian companies as it was supported by its market liquidity, attractive valuations and access to investors in Mainland China and throughout Asia.

He also told Russian business leaders about the new business opportunities in HK including the city's prospect to be the offshore centre for RMB business. He urged them to take advantage of HK's financial infrastructure in settling Mainland trade transactions in RMB.

Mr Tsang promised that HK's financial agencies would step up their regulatory duties and handle the IPO applications of Russian enterprises in a fair manner. He was confident that there would be more Russian companies to be listed on HK's stock market.

Meanwhile, the SCMP and Ta Kung Pao reported that Mr Tsang and Russia's Minister of Finance Alexei Kudrin agreed that the two governments should study the possibility of signing a comprehensive agreement on avoidance of double taxation.

CS's whirlwind visit to Beijing causes speculation

The papers in moderate coverage with a few in their inside-page leads reported that Chief Secretary Henry Tang made a trip of about eight hours to Beijing yesterday to meet with Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office deputy director Zhou Bo, a move which observers considered highly unusual.

Reports noted that the CS, as the highest-ranking official in HK while CE Donald Tsang was on an official visit to Russia, hastily announced his trip late on Wednesday evening.

A spokesman for the CS's Office said Mr Tang and Mr Zhou exchanged views on issues including the progress of HK's participation in the preparation of the National 12th Five-Year Plan and HK-Guangdong co-operation that would further the social and economic development of HK.

Esprit shares hit 16-month low

Shares of Esprit Holdings fell to their lowest in 16 months on Friday after Asia's No 3 apparel retailer posted weaker-than-expected earnings and forecast a challenging wholesale market ahead.

The stocks fell as much as 6.8 per cent to HK$40 in early trade before steadying at HK$40.65, down 5.2 per cent.

“We see no growth driver for the company in the medium term and it appears to be a loser amid intense competition,” said William Lo, an analyst at Ample Finance Group. “I would switch to other retailers.”
Analysts said the mainland would be a growth engine for Esprit in future but it would take time to build up its network.

Competing with Hennes & Mauritz, Inditex, and GAP, Esprit on Thursday said it was looking to the mainland as its next growth engine, aiming to double sales there in five years as its core European market remains uncertain.

Esprit posted a worse-than-expected 19 per cent fall in second-half profit amid slower sales growth and euro weakness, and said the wholesale market will remain challenging to the end of calendar 2010.
Esprit shares have fallen more than 21 per cent so far this year, lagging a 4.5 per cent drop in the broader market.

Stock indices update

Hang Seng Index :	20,868.92	+245.09
Dow Jones Industrial Average :	10,320.10	+50.63
Nasdaq Composite Index :	2,200.01	+23.17
FTSE 100 Index :	5,371.04	+4.63

Revue de presse du 2 septembre 2010

Secrétariat de l'Association — 2010-09-02T10:45:10Z

Sommaire

Manila tragedy survivor's condition improving

The hostage incident in Manila continued to attract prominent text and pictorial coverage, with many papers playing up the point that the condition of Jason Leung, who had suffered serious head injuries, had been improving although he was still in a coma. Five papers gave the story lead treatment.

Some papers highlighted TMH neurosurgery chief Dawson Fong's remarks that the swelling and blockage in the 18-year-old teenager's brain could have been caused by an earlier operation by Manila doctors during which dissolvable surgical gauze was applied to stop bleeding.

In an inside-page lead, the HK Daily News reported that the Philippines' Secretary of Foreign Affairs Alberto Romulo had contacted the Chinese Embassy in the country hoping that the Mainland and HK would resume organising tour groups to the Philippines before the « National Day golden week » next month.

The paper said the Philippine tourist sector also planned to visit HK, Beijing and Shanghai to promote the country's tourism.

HK Tourism Board chairman James Tien said the black travel alert against visits to the Philippines should not be lifted until a detailed report of the hostage incident was completed, some papers said.

Several papers reported on former CS Anson Chan's high praises on the Government's prompt response to the hostage incident. She hoped the Philippine authorities would conclude their investigations as soon as possible.

Leung Chun-ying on eligibility for entrant scheme

The papers in good coverage, with some in their inside-page leads, reported that Executive council convenor Leung Chun-ying said yesterday that he had not heard anything from the Government about excluding real estate from the permissible investment asset classes of the Capital Investment Entrant Scheme.

He cautioned that there should be a thorough and comprehensive study before making such a change, adding that the Government should consider if foreign companies could help their staff to become homebuyers, or whether local firms could help their expatriate employees to buy flats in the city.

Sing Tao Daily said it understood that the Government had not yet finalised the proposal as it needed to consider thoroughly whether the new arrangement would cause serious psychological impact and lead to fluctuations in flat prices.

Task force fails to determine cause of LPG vehicle stalling

The papers in moderate coverage reported that an investigation into the spate of breakdowns of taxis and minibuses fuelled with LPG from Sinopec early this year had failed to determine the cause of sudden stalling in mid-journey.

In a report submitted to the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department, the special task force said it could only conclude that vehicles would operate normally through regular maintenance when using LPG of a quality meeting HK's standard.

Lamenting the failure to identify the truth of the problem, one member of the task force, To Sun-tong of the Motor Transport Workers General Union, said the transport industry accepted the findings with reluctance.

The papers also noted that the EMSD had accepted the recommendations of the task force such as continuing random checks on LPG vehicles. It would also incorporate maintenance needs in the draft code of practice for LPG vehicles.

Chinese big investors to the world

SCMP

HK and mainland buyers are among the biggest property players in capital cities

Mainland and Hong Kong investors have become a major force in the global property market. They have already emerged as the biggest group of buyers in many places, and their share of the market is expected to grow even further.
Favoured investment destinations of Chinese buyers include university towns and cities where their children study, especially in Britain, the United States, Canada and Australia. The combined mainland and Hong Kong student population in Britain has reached 60,000.

Patrick O'Neill, chief executive of the US property developer The O'Neill Group, said the Chinese share of international demand for homes in the US would double to 16 per cent this year. In Vancouver and London, he said, they were already the biggest source of overseas demand.
« Anecdotally, our associates in Vancouver are reporting that Hong Kong and mainland investors comprise over half of the open house traffic, » O'Neill said. Figures from estate agency Knight Frank show that 11 per cent of international property investors in prime central London's new-homes market are Chinese, who are also the largest overseas group. One-third of buyers of new homes in the Canary Wharf financial district come from the mainland and Hong Kong, the agency reports.

Jennet Siebrits, head of residential research at CB Richard Ellis, said Chinese buyers were poised to overtake Russians as the most active international buyers in the prime central London housing market. « We would expect the favourable exchange rate to lead to an imminent rise in the number of Chinese buyers investing in prime central London property, » Siebrits said.
Chinese investors are most active in the off-plan, or pre-construction, markets across the world from Dubai to Sao Paulo. Other hot destinations include France, where they are buying second-hand apartments in Paris and holiday homes on the French Riviera as well as new homes, reports estate agency HomeHunts.

Homebuying is tracking other economic activities. In Bordeaux, for example, the number of vineyard investors from the mainland and Hong Kong has been growing, according to Joel Palous, proprietor of AIM Vineyards consultancy.
Chinese buyers are said to target homes across the price spectrum. « The price points of mainland and Hong Kong investments begin from the low-end properties starting around HK$800,000, » O'Neill said. At the top end of the market, agents recount helping mainland business people purchase £15 million (HK$180 million) houses in London. O'Neill said Chinese investors were taking advantage of the slump in property prices overseas to buy into these markets for capital gains in future. « In some of the overbuilt markets in Southeast Asia and US cities like Miami and Las Vegas, homes are going at a discount of up to 70 per cent, » O'Neill said.

« Real estate is cyclical, and even the most conservative economists project returning to and eventually surpassing the 2006 prices in the next upswing in about four to six years. »

Gary Zhang, a senior manager in a Beijing-based energy company, has been looking for an apartment below US$1.5 million in Manhattan. Among the main reasons for his interest are an appreciating yuan and a drop in New York property prices.
« Prices in Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong all are too high. New York City is a better place to invest, » Zhang said, adding that prices in Manhattan have picked up a bit in the first half but are still lower than their peak levels.
« I may work in New York City in the next couple of years. I will move in if I do go. If not, it can just be an investment, » Zhang said.

Currency fluctuations in some countries has also made property less expensive for Chinese investors. The pound has depreciated 20 per cent against the Hong Kong dollar and 30 per cent against the yuan over the past three years, according to Reuters, while the US dollar has depreciated 10 per cent against the yuan.
The mainland's rapid economic growth means it now has 343,000 high net worth individuals, or people with more than US$1 million in investable assets, according to wealth management company Scorpio Partnership. Hong Kong has 72,000 high net worth individuals. Many such people buy property in Canada, Britain and the US because they are also attracted to their visa programmes, O'Neill said.

Wealthy foreigners can gain permanent residency in Britain by investing £1 million over five years. In Quebec, Canada, those who have net assets of C$800,000 (HK$5.94 million) and invest C$400,000 can get permanent residency. In the US, the requirement is an investment of US$1 million in a business that employs 10 people.
Matthew Montagu-Pollock, publisher of the website Global Property Guide, said mainland investment in overseas property was on the threshold of a boom.

« What triggers any national buying spree is of course economic growth, large increases in personal wealth and large increases in the value of the currency. The mainland Chinese have experienced the first two, » he said.
« Many of them have good reason to want to keep some property outside the mainland for the time-honoured reason of diversification or risk-avoidance. I would expect the US, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia and the UK to continue to top the list. Mainlanders' interest in overseas property seems likely to just keep growing. »

Ed Lewis, director of London new developments at Savills estate agency, said 10 per cent of his company's sales went to mainland and Hong Kong buyers. He said he expected this proportion to rise next year when the number of British buyers are likely to decline further.

According to website Smart New Homes, the number of new homes for sale in Britain is at its lowest since November 2006. A lack of mortgage financing has deterred many Britons from buying, the website says.
Ironically, while Hong Kong investors benefit from affordable buying opportunities overseas, they are finding competition from mainland investors increasingly tough at home. A third of Hong Kong's luxury flats were sold to mainland buyers in the first six months of this year, prompting lawmakers to debate curbs on mainland investment.

Two ideas being discussed are raising the investment level in the Capital Investment Entrant Scheme to HK$10 million from HK$6.5 million, and banning outside investment in small-to-medium-sized flats. If enacted, they could restrict the number of mainlanders using Hong Kong as a springboard into overseas property.

Stock indices update

Hang Seng Index :	20,623.83	+87.34
Dow Jones Industrial Average :	10,269.47	+254.75
Nasdaq Composite Index :	2,176.84	+62.81
FTSE 100 Index :	5,366.41	+141.19

Revue de presse du 1 septembre 2010

Secrétariat de l'Association — 2010-09-01T09:53:33Z

Sommaire

Luxury site sets Kowloon record in auction

The papers reported prominently, with six in their leads, that a luxury residential site on Ede Road had gone under the hammer for $1.285 billion, or $16,587 per square foot, to Kerry Properties in yesterday's auction, setting a record high sale price for land in Kowloon.

It was noted that the price, which beat the $12,540 per square foot paid by SHKP for a plot in Ho Man Tin in June, nearly doubled the opening bid and had exceeded market expectations by at least 17 per cent.

In its front-page lead, Ming Pao said in headlines that the emergence of the two « kings of land » (地王) within three months had shown that the new nine proposals introduced by the Government were ineffective, quoting surveyors and legislators.

DP's Lee Wing-tat urged the Government to consider putting up at least more than 10 plots of land under the Application List for sales at one go to deter developers from attempting to prop up the property market. He believed that this was the only way to rein in flat prices.

DAB's Chan Kam-lam was of the view that the Government should speed up identifying lands for the construction of medium to small-sized properties. He added that the Government should convert some of the public rental housing units to HOS flats for sale as soon as possible.

Noting that the bidding in land auctions had become more fierce, surveyor Lam Chun-chiu held that this showed that Government's new measures to cool the overheated property market had little effect. He agreed that the authorities should put up more lower quality small to medium-sized sites for auction.

'Government to exclude real estate as investment asset from entrant scheme'

The Oriental Daily News in its front-page lead reported that the Government was considering excluding real estate from the permissible investment asset classes of the Capital Investment Entrant Scheme to curb speculative activities in the property market. The Sun carried an identical report in its inside-page lead.

The papers said that under the new eligibility criteria of the scheme, applicants would only be allowed to invest in financial assets such as listed shares and bonds. It was expected that the new arrangement would be announced in the upcoming Policy Address at the earliest.

The proposal was in response to recommendations by various political parties on the policy blueprint which included calls for an increase in the amount of required investment and scrapping of the scheme.

The Government was of the view that an increase in the amount of investment would deter potential applicants who were not interested in investing in real estates. A total scrap of the scheme, on the other hand, would be against the Government's objective to attract overseas talents and investors to come to HK, the papers said.

HK police complete examinations on bullet-riddled tour bus in Manila

The papers continued to accord prominent coverage to the hostage tragedy in Manila, with many playing up the point that HK forensic investigators had spent 15 hours to collect evidence on the bloodied vehicle and the gunman's firearms. The SCMP, The Sun and Apple Daily gave the story lead treatment.

ACP Crime David Ng told the media in Manila that the HK police team had done a variety of examinations to collect evidence, including on-site inspection of ballistic trajectories and blood-spatter analysis. He added that the team would bring samples back to HK for thorough analysis and was expected to take about a month to complete the investigation.

The team would meet the Philippine judiciary department today to arrange for interviews with important witnesses, some papers added.

Taiwan offers free online visa to attract HK, Macao tourists

The papers in good coverage with many in their inside-page leads reported that Taiwan's National Immigration Agency announced yesterday that starting from today, HK or Macao-born people could apply for a Taiwan visa on the agency's website and print it out at home.

Reports noted that eligible travellers only needed to present the visa with their passport to immigration officers on arrival in Taiwan. The visa would be valid for 90 days with a maximum stay of 30 days and the $75 visa fee was waived for a single entry.

Lee Ling-fong, director of the agency's entry and exit affairs division, said the move was aimed at making the system more convenient and attracting more tourists from HK and Macao. She expected that at least 350,000 people would apply for the visa under the new system.

Saying that the Taiwan side had already extended friendliness, she hoped the HK side would reciprocate, for example, by granting Taiwan visitors visa-free entry or cutting some application fees.

HK Association of Travel Agents chairman Paul Leung estimated that the number of visa applicants would jump by a double-digit percentage under the online system.

Meanwhile, Financial Secretary John Tsang concluded his four-day visit to Taiwan yesterday, saying that his thorough discussions with Taiwan officials, business and cultural sectors had laid a good foundation for developing closer ties in trade and cultural areas. The two sides had set a clear working direction and co-operation mode, he added.

When asked whether HK would offer a reciprocal visa arrangement for Taiwan visitors, the FS said the SARG welcomed any measure which provided convenience for HK and Taiwan people travelling between the two places. He added that the SARG reviewed its system from time to time to see what changes could be made to improve the arrangements, the SCMP reported.

Andrew Li steps down as CJ

The SCMP in a front-page story and other papers in moderate text and pictorial coverage reported that outgoing Commissioner of Justice J Andrew Li yesterday met the media outside the Court of Final Appeal on his final day of office.

Mr Justice Li thanked the community for its support and said he had spared no efforts to fulfil his duties in the past 13 years.

The outgoing CJ hoped that legal aid services would be enhanced to help the middle class and more legal professionals would offer voluntary services to the general public.

Incoming CJ Geoffrey Ma would assume office today, the papers added.

Recommendations put forward to counter superbugs

The papers widely reported, with some in their inside-page leads, that the Health Protection Programme on Antimicrobial Resistance under the Centre for Health Protection had put forward 10 recommendations to counter the spread of drug-resistant superbugs and their mutations.

The working group called for a stronger emphasis on four major strategic directions - surveillance, infectious control, rational use of antibiotics and community engagement.

Most papers highlighted the recommendation of introducing two new antibiotics, fosfomycin and colistin, for use in HK. Describing the two drugs as the final line of defence against the most virulent drug-resistant bacteria, programme chairman Ho Pak-leung said guidelines and regular surveillance on the use of the drugs would be issued and put in place.

The working group also suggested the establishment of an electronic platform for hospitals to upload statistics on drug-resistant superbug cases with a view to stepping up surveillance. Better disinfection methods for hospitals and better surveillance in homes for the elderly, which had reportedly seen a mild increase in drug-resistant cases, were also among the recommendations.

Cheung Kong eyes more overseas projects

Cheung Kong Infrastructure (CKI) said it was looking at more than 10 projects in Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand, after it struck a US$9 billion deal to buy Britain's biggest power network.
“Money is not an issue and the most important thing is whether we can find good projects,” CKI group managing director Kam Hing Lam told reporters on the sidelines of an infrastructure conference in Hong Kong.

The company, controlled by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing, had cash on hand of more than HK$10 billion at the end of June.
Kam would not directly comment on a report that it was bidding for Britain's high-speed rail line, High Speed 1, which could fetch £1.5 billion (HK$17.95 billion).
But he said the company has consistently targeted projects with certainty of returns and strong recurrent cash flow.
CKI, a unit of Hutchison Whampoa, is one of the bidders for Britain's only high-speed rail line, three people familiar with the matter said last month.
“This is not a rail but a tunnel project that has a 30-year concession to the undersea tunnel that Eurostar runs,” Kam said.

CKI has experience in investing in an undersea tunnel for Hong Kong's subway, he added.
“The bidding is at its very preliminary stage and they have just asked for potential bidders to show their hands,” Kam said.

In late July, the company teamed up with affiliate Hongkong Electric 0006and the Li Ka-shing foundation to buy Britain's biggest electricity distribution network from France's EDF for US$9 billion, CKI's largest investment ever.
“The UK power grid was a ‘must bid' project for CKI, as we had electricity distribution investments in other countries but not in the UK at that time,” he said.
The deal will roughly doubled CKI's presence in Britain.

Stock indices update

Hang Seng Index :	20,536.49	-200.73
Dow Jones Industrial Average :	10,014.72	+4.99
Nasdaq Composite Index :	2,114.03	-5.94
FTSE 100 Index :	5,225.22	+23.66

Revue de presse du 31 août 2010

Secrétariat de l'Association — 2010-08-31T12:30:25Z

Sommaire

HK police examine tour bus in Manila hijack

The papers in good coverage, with three in their leads, reported that HK police were allowed yesterday to conduct forensic investigation on board the tour bus where eight HK people were killed in the Manila hostage bloodbath.

The Philippine authorities, meanwhile, sought to collect statements from the survivors repeatedly, the papers noted.

The Security Bureau and the police said in a joint statement that the request would be handled in accordance with established protocol, adding that the authorities did not envisage major problems in providing the co-operation.

Reports widely noted the meeting between ACP Crime David Ng and the Philippine Justice Secretary Leila De Lima and Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo yesterday.

DP legislator James To said the Philippine authorities had no right to deter HK police from investigating the case.

The SCMP noted that HK and the Philippines were signatories to a Mutual legal Assistance Agreement on criminal matter, which put in place procedures and guidelines for the gathering of evidence and information sharing on law enforcement matters. The paper, however, said that since the HK police were in Manila to gather information for the Coroner's inquest rather than a criminal investigation, co-operation between the two sides would be on a voluntary basis.

Ms De Lima said that the Philippine authorities were expected to complete their investigations in two to three weeks' time.

Some papers in headlines quoted her as saying that the Philippine authorities would not answer enquiries from the HK media about the incident from now on and that all information related to the incident would be released through the Justice Department.

The Oriental Daily News and The Sun in headlines reported that the Philippine authorities tried to stop HK media from covering the investigation by HK police on board the tour bus yesterday. The papers noted that only local media were permitted to cover the meeting between HK police and Philippine officials.

Philippine Secretary of Social Welfare Corazon Soliman said the Philippine government was liaising with the Chinese Embassy in the Philippines its plan to offer financial subsidy for families and survivors of the hostage incident.

Legco would hold a special meeting on Thursday to discuss the incident. A motion would express strong dissatisfaction with the Philippine government's handling of the rescue operation, urging it to apologise and offer compensation to the victims.

PMWC reaches consensus on initial minimum wage level

In good coverage, the papers reported that the Provisional Minimum Wage Commission (PMWC) had reached a consensus on the initial minimum wage level but its chairman Teresa Cheng remained tight-lipped about the figure. Five papers gave the story lead treatment.

Some papers, including the SCMP, Ming Pao, Sing Pao, Wen Wei Po and Ta Kung Pao said the PMWC had suggested $28 per hour while the HK Economic Journal learned that the figure was between $28 and $29 and Sing Tao Daily understood that it was close to $29. The HK Commercial Daily expected a figure between $28 and $30.

Quoting Government sources, some papers said CE Donald Tsang would follow the commission's recommendation to show respect to the provisional body's independence and the consensus reached by its members.

The sources also said the Government was considering expanding the Transport Support Scheme to cover all districts as a supplementary measure.

FS's Taiwan visit paves way for regular talks

Many papers in their inside-page leads, with Ta Kung Pao in its lead, reported that the HK-Taiwan Economic and Cultural Co-operation and Promotion Council (ECCPC) and the Taiwan-HK Economic and Cultural Co-operation Council (THEC) held their first joint meeting in Taipei yesterday. Both sides agreed to take turns to organise regular joint meetings, with the next one to be held in HK next year.

The two councils agreed that HK and Taiwan should strengthen exchanges and co-operation in trade, finance, investment promotion and other economic areas. They also identified seven areas, including the avoidance of double taxation and exchange of air traffic information, for greater co-operation.

While quoting Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) minister Lai Shin-yuan as saying that her government would shortly announce measures to simplify visa procedures for HK visitors, some papers noted that the SARG did not announce any reciprocal initiatives.

Ming Pao and the HK Economic Journal played up the remarks by THEC chairman Lin Chen-kuo that the Taiwan side had no problem with waiving the visa requirement for HK visitors, but the HK side might have some concerns.

FS John Tsang, who was visiting Taiwan in his capacity as the honorary chairman of the ECCPC, said during the meeting that the MAC had put forth suggestions on the provision of permit-free access for Taiwan residents visiting HK and enhancement in the functions of Taiwan organisations in HK.

The SARG would follow up and examine the issues carefully and consider positively proposals that would further facilitate the entry of Taiwan visitors to HK, he added.

SCMA Stephen Lam, the ECCPC's Executive Vice-Chairperson, said after the meeting that the SARG was prepared to consider carefully and follow up on proposals for permit-free travels to HK but this needed to be looked at very carefully.

CE rejects link between HK dollars and RMB

Several papers in moderate coverage reported that CE Donald Tsang told Itar-Tass that it was technically infeasible to link HK dollars with RMB as the latter could not be exchanged freely in the market at this stage and was therefore not suitable to serve as a reserve currency for HK dollars.

In an interview with the Russian news agency before his departure to Moscow for an official visit, Mr Tsang said that as the economic cycles of HK were different from those on the Mainland, it would be more appropriate for the SAR to maintain the existing dollar link even if RMB could be exchanged freely in the future.

Two suicides take place in same Sheung Shui block in one day

The papers in good coverage with three in their front-page leads reported that two suicides took place at Tin Hee House, Tin Ping Estate in Sheung Shui yesterday. Many papers highlighted the fact that there had been five suicides killing six people at the same residential block in the past four months.

Reports noted that a 23-year-old man was found lying unconscious outside the block at about 6am yesterday and was certified dead at the scene. He was believed to have jumped from the 35th floor staircase of the building.

The other case was revealed at about 11 hours later in which a 22 year-old man was found hanging himself in his home in Tin Hee House and was certified dead.

Stock indices update

Hang Seng Index :	20,737.22	+139.87
Dow Jones Industrial Average :	10,009.73	-140.92
Nasdaq Composite Index :	2,119.97	-33.66
FTSE 100 Index :	Market closed	Market closed

Revue de presse du 30 août 2010

Secrétariat de l'Association — 2010-08-30T10:59:00Z

Sommaire

80,000 march to demand justice for Manila hostage tragedy

The papers in prominent text and pictorial coverage reported that some 80,000 people took to the streets yesterday to demand truth and justice as well as express anger at the Philippine government's handling of the hijack incident in Manila last week.

Reports widely noted that the march was a rare demonstration of unity between the pro-establishment and pro-democracy camps in Legco. Addressing the crowd yesterday, Legco president Tsang Yok-sing demanded a formal apology and compensation from the Philippine government.

Many papers said in headlines that HK police had been told to « observe » rather than conduct investigation on board the tour coach involved.

On Saturday, five HK police officers and two specialists who tried to conduct forensic investigations were barred from boarding the bus by the Philippine police.

The Philippine Justice Secretary Leila De Lima said no prior request or co-ordination had been received, adding that investigations conducted by the HK team would be allowed only after the Philippine team had completed the process.

Quoting Philippine national police senior superintendent Agrimero Cruz, the papers noted that HK investigators were unable to do their work earlier because of a lack of co-ordination. He said HK forensic experts were scheduled to comb through the bus today.

Meanwhile, HK was beefing up its investigation team and ACP Crime Ng Ka-sing arrived in Manila early this morning to join the team.

A spokesman for the HK police said Mr Ng would hold a meeting with the Philippine authorities, including representatives from the national police and justice department at 9am this morning.

CE Donald Tsang said the SARG was co-operating with the Manila police and hoped that the information and post-mortem reports from HK would enrich the investigations by the Philippine government.

Some papers noted that preliminary findings by the Philippine national police showed that the eight victims were probably killed by the gunman.

The papers also reported that the condition of Jason Leung, who underwent brain surgery upon his return from Manila, had stabilised while other injured victims continued to recover in hospitals.

In an essay published in Ming Pao yesterday, Lee Ying-chuen, one of the tourists on the hijacked coach, said that the hostages had thought of subduing the gunman. They did not do so partly because they had overestimated the ability of the Manila police, she added.

The HK Economic Times said in headlines that families of the victims had commended the prompt response and meticulous care from the SARG in the incident, from arranging for a chartered flight for family members to Manila to offering psychological counselling for the survived victims.

The weekend papers noted that the CE visited Jason Leung at Tuen Mun Hospital last Friday. On RTHK's HK Letter, Mr Tsang said he had sent a letter to the Philippine president, calling on his government to conduct a comprehensive and professional investigation into the incident. He also attended a candle-light vigil at Chater Garden to commemorate the victims last Friday night.

Mr Tsang decided not to attend the « Sixth Pan-Pearl River Delta Regional Co-operation and Development Forum and Trade Fair » from August 27 to August 29 in Fujian to deal with the aftermath of the hostage incident.

The papers (28.8) reported that the Government had decided that all the eight victims killed in the tragedy could be buried permanently in Tribute Garden at the Wo Hop Shek public cemetery reserved for brave non-civil servants.

FS's landmark visit to Taiwan

The papers today and over the weekend accorded good coverage to Financial Secretary John Tsang's visit to Taiwan which marked a new era in HK-Taiwan exchanges as he was the most senior SARG official to travel to the island since the Reunification.

Reports noted that the FS who led a delegation of more than 20 government officials including Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Rita Lau arrived in Taipei on Saturday for a four-day visit. Mr Tsang was visiting in his capacity as the honorary chairman of the HK-Taiwan Economic and Cultural Co-operation and Promotion Council (ECCPC).

The FS met Taichung Mayor Jason Hu and visited the headquarters of a mobile phone maker on Saturday, the papers (29.8) noted.

Many papers today reported that Mr Tsang yesterday visited Taiwanese bookstore chain Eslite, which was planning to open a branch in HK. Welcoming Eslite's move, the FS said relevant government departments would follow up on the matter proactively.

When being asked whether he would discuss with relevant Taiwan departments about the mutual travel-visa waivers, Mr Tsang said the authorities would study any proposals that would facilitate tourism and enhance economic benefits.

The ECCPC today would hold its first meeting with its Taiwan counterpart, the Taiwan-HK Economic and Cultural Co-operation Council. Sing Tao Daily understood that the two sides would discuss various topics including Taiwan waiving the $75 visa fee for HK visitors. The Taiwan authorities were expected to make an announcement after the visit, the paper added.

Meanwhile, Mr Tsang said in his blog message yesterday that he hoped the visit would add vitality to the HK-Taiwan relations.

Constitutional reform proposals approved

The papers (29.8) in moderate coverage, with Ta Kung Pao and Wen Wei Po in their leads, reported that the National People's Congress Standing Committee last Saturday approved and recorded the amendments to annexes I and II to the BL concerning the methods for selecting the CE and the formation of Legco.

NPCSC chairman Wu Bangguo said he hoped the approval, which showed that the consensus in HK had been affirmed, would be favourable to the progressive constitutional development in the SAR.

Welcoming the decision, CE Donald Tsang said it signified the completion of the five-step legislative process for amending the two electoral methods, realising the aspirations of the whole community to roll forward constitutional development.

'Minimum wage to be set about $28 per hour'

The Oriental Daily News and The Sun learned that the Provisional Minimum Wage Commission would put forward the suggested minimum wage floor of about $28 per hour to the CE and Exco today at the earliest.

Quoting sources, the papers said the commission would detail in its report the reasons and impact on various sectors if the minimum pay was set at the proposed level.

The sources understood that the Administration would consider expanding the Transport Support Scheme if the business sector supported the commission's suggestion, so that low-income workers would get an hourly pay of around $30 together with government subsidies on transport expenses.

Made in China ? Quality, website says

SCMP, 30 August 2010, Keith Wallis

In a world of fakes, tainted food, indifferent service and shoddy products, Lionel Derimais is trying to highlight the best of the mainland's crafts and services people.
From hats to furniture, musical instruments to speedboats and cheese to bespoke travel services, the French photographer has featured them all on his website, nicelymadeinchina.com.
And the idea has obviously struck a chord, with the website attracting around 7,300 readers since it launched in April.

Derimais, who arrived in Beijing five years ago, said the aim of the website was to focus on the manufacture of « well-made goods by Chinese who take pride in producing quality products ». Perhaps unsurprisingly, the companies featured so far have been small and medium-sized enterprises, some of which already have a global reach. They also feature a high proportion of expatriates, albeit with Chinese connections through family or mainland partners.

For example, Xiamen Red Dragon Yacht Building, which focuses on yachts and speedboats, was founded in 2003 by David Winter, an expatriate who was associated with shipyards in Taiwan. Working with general manager Liu Hongyan and a team of 50 crafts people, Winter has since developed a network of clients all over the world and the company has sold vessels to at least 10 European countries, the United States, Australia and India.

Shanghai Trio, which started making souvenirs 12 years ago, has branched out into making bags, quilts, tablecloths, silk jackets and other products that are sold in its own stores on the mainland and stocked by shops in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Europe.

Ceramics maker Hai Chen, who owns Blue Shanghai White, supplies her handmade porcelain, which includes teapots, vases and furniture, to Sweden's largest department store every Lunar New Year.
Others are more locally focused with cheese maker and Heilongjiang native Liu Yang operating out of a single shop in Beijing.

Bespoke does not necessarily mean expensive. While double-bass maker Gao Zhenmin sells his instruments for up to 55,000 yuan (HK$62,827) from his factory in Langfang, Hebei province, jeweller Nicolas Favard can sell a silver handmade money clip for 500 yuan from his Beijing shop-cum-workshop.

Derimais said : « I'm aiming at building a community of people who appreciate finely crafted things that last and people enjoy using. I like the idea of putting people in contact. »
But Derimais is mindful of the wider impact the website could have in spotlighting crafts that are under threat because the skills are dying out either through lack of demand or because few younger people are involved. He hopes the website could spark a revival in age-old skills and products for which China is renowned.

Derimais, who was born in Paris but later moved to Brittany, launched the website after a girlfriend brought home a newly purchased bag and he commented : « That looks nicely made. »
He registered the domain name, nicelymadeinchina.com, but the website remained dormant while he worked out how to develop the content along the broad theme that it would help people « source products and services to satisfy export markets and increasingly discerning Chinese consumers ».
He decided to cover one company a week with the owner featured in a question-and-answer-type interview with accompanying pictures posted each Saturday.

Derimais has developed the website while keeping his hand in as a photographer, a trade he has been doing for the past 30 years.
His work has appeared in a raft of publications including National Geographic France and the International Herald Tribune and focused on areas as diverse as the last Manchu speakers, the Monte Carlo rally and Dominique Lapierre, who wrote the acclaimed novel City of Joy.

Initially, Derimais featured the owners and companies that were mentioned through personal contact, but since the website has attracted a regular following, he has been receiving phone calls from people offering recommendations.
Asked how he judges a product's quality, he said : "That's the big question. How can nicelymadeinchina be trusted ?

There are two ways : I rely on advisers who recommend a company. Then, when I do the story, I talk to the owner/maker and I go to visit the premises when possible, as in the case of Red Dragon shipyard in Xiamen.
« Of course, if a reader reported a bad experience with a recommended company, I would look into it and, if necessary, remove the story. But the adage `buyer beware' should not be forgotten. »
Now Derimais is looking at further developments including the possibility of partnerships.
He said the website was « still a labour of love » as he had not made any money out of it.
However, « It's very exciting. It's fun to do ».

Revue de presse du 23 au 27 août 2010

Secrétariat de l'Association — 2010-08-27T12:29:44Z

MONDAY, AUGUST 23, 2010

CS dismisses concerns that arts hub will become a mishmash

Chief Secretary, Henry Tang, who was also chairman of the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority, had dismissed concerns that the final design for the arts hub would end up being a mishmash of inherent elements, giving assurances that the hub would be complete and organised, many papers reported in routine to good coverage.

His comments came amid criticism that a final blueprint incorporating features of all three shortlisted proposals would result in the arts hub being an awkward mismatch following the release of the three concept plans last Friday.

The papers (21.8) quoted Institute of Urban Design president Bernard Lim as saying that it would be better to ask the public to pick one particular plan to maintain the conceptual integrity of the development, instead of making up a final plan with preferred elements from each of them.

Low-interest rates increase asset-price bubble risk : Govt Economist

The persistent low-interest environment had increased the risk of asset-price bubble in the property market, the HK Economic Journal quoted Government Economist Helen Chan as saying in its front-page lead story.

She added that the Government had adopted timely measures to stabilise the property market to avoid repeating the mistakes in 1997 when property prices plummeted following the Asian financial turmoil sending many home owners into negative equity.

Mrs Chan said that property prices had surged by 40 per cent over the past 18 months, adding that this was rather « extraordinary » for prices to register such a drastic increase within a short period of time.

We had learned from our experience in 1997 that it would be too late if the Government put up measures until the formation of asset-price bubbles, she said.

While conceding that the Government's land supply had been on the low side for the past two years, Mrs Chan stressed that the supply of first-hand residential properties had increased from 53,000 at the end of 2009 to 61,000 at the end of June this year, adding that this was a rather significant increase in flat supply.

Meanwhile, Ming Pao reported in an inside-page lead that there were 44 cases of property transactions in 10 major private housing estates in the secondary market over the past two days, a 33.3 per cent rebound in one week following the introduction of additional measures to cool the overheated property market.

'FS to make landmark visit to Taiwan at end of August'

Quoting Taiwan media sources, many papers reported in routine to moderate coverage that Financial Secretary John Tsang was expected to make a landmark visit to Taiwan later this month to hold bilateral meetings with the semi-official body Taiwan-HK Economic & Cultural Co-operation Council to foster economic and trade ties.

The source said that Mr Tsang would visit Taiwan in his capacity as the honorary chairman of the HK-Taiwan Economic and Cultural Co-operation and Promotion Council from Sunday for three days.

If the visit was realised, Mr Tsang would become the most senior SAR official to visit the island, a further indication of the improvement in cross-strait co-operation.

In headlines, Ta Kung Pao reported that HK-Taiwan Business Co-operation Committee chairman David Lie, Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Stephen Lam, Secretary for Comemrce and Economic Development Rita Lau and Secretary for Home Affairs Tsang Tak-sing would also join the delegation.

In response to media enquiries, Mr Lie said details had not been finalised but he hoped the visit could be made as soon as possible to strengthen business co-operation and exchanges with Taiwan. He expected that the visit, if confirmed, would focus on financial services and tourism.

Declining to confirm the date of the visit, a spokesman for the FS's office said the SARG had all along hoped that the visit could be arranged as quickly as possible and details would be announced at the appropriate time.

NPC local deputy to raise anti-subversion law in Beijing meeting

The SCMP today and yesterday's papers in moderate coverage quoted National People's Congress local deputy Peter Wong as saying on Saturday that he would try to raise the issue of BL23 legislation when the National People's Congress Standing Committee met in Beijing this week for one of its two monthly sessions.

Mr Wong said there was a need for an anti-subversion law as HK's electoral system was going to be more open and it could easily allow intervention by foreign countries.

However, another NPC local deputy Lam Shun-chiu called for more time for discussion. Taking the view that it was a complicated issue, Mr Lam hoped that when a suitable time came, HK people could reach a consensus and the SAR could have a national security law that all people felt comfortable with.

NPCSC member Rita Fan said on Friday that the initiative of relaunching the BL23 legislative exercise rested with the SARG, the papers (21.8) reported. She held that the comments made by director general of Liaison Office's department of publicity, cultural and sports affairs Hao Tiechuan last week did not indicate that a legislative exercise was imminent.

Kick-off date to construct HK-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge delayed

The Oriental Daily News and The Sun in inside-page leads reported that reclamation works for cross-boundary facilities for the HK-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, originally scheduled to commence in the third quarter of this year, would be delayed.

The papers quoted Highways Department's senior engineer for the HK-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, Lam Yat-ming, as saying that there was a need to amend the tender document contents due to complexity of the project.

Mr Lam said while the reclamation works tender could only be invited in January next year at the earliest, he was confident that the construction of the bridge could be completed in 2016 as scheduled.

Business, opinion leaders favour hourly minimum pay of $28.1 to $33

The SCMP in an inside-page lead carried an SCMP/TNS survey on minimum wage which found that nearly half of the 1,000 business and opinion leaders polled favoured a minimum wage of $28.1 to $33 per hour.

The survey, conducted between July 20 and August 9, found that 28.8 per cent agreed with an hourly rate of $28.1 to $32.9 while 19.5 per cent favoured $33. Another 11 per cent preferred a rate more than $33 while 27 per cent considered an hourly rate of between $24.1 and $28 appropriate.

A total of 74.5 per cent respondents said they could accept an increase in operating cost of between 1.1 per cent and five per cent after the implementation of a minimum wage.

41pc grassroots in Sham Shui Po earn less than $5,000 a month

Many papers in moderate coverage reported that a SoCO survey on 100 people living or working in Sham Shui Po found that the average monthly household income of 41 per cent of them was less than $5,000.

Sixty per cent said their income could not meet their expenditure, of which 80 per cent had to borrow money to make ends meet. The respondents on average had not dined at restaurants for four years.

Sixty-six per cent said their employers had violated the labour laws such as not providing paid leaves or making MPF contributions, but 74 per cent of them said they would not protest and would continue to work because of fear of retaliation.

The organisation's Ho Hei-wah took the view that to improve the livelihood of the underprivileged, the hourly minimum wage should be set at $33, coupled with other measures including legislating on standard working hours, expanding the Transport Support Scheme and creating more job opportunities.

He added that the Labour Department should step up inspections to address the problem of labour exploitation.

Sing Tao Daily reported that the organisation would submit the survey results to the Commission on Strategic Development today, hoping that the Government would pay more attention to the problems faced by the underprivileged.

TUESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2010

Eight HK tourists killed in Manila hostage drama

A 12-hour hostage drama aboard a Hong Tai Travel Agent's tour bus in Manila ended in bloodshed yesterday, leaving eight HK tourists dead and seven injured, with the survivors accusing the Philippine authorities of acting too late and turning a blind eye to the hostage ordeal, the papers accorded prominent text and pictorial coverage to the tragedy and all gave the story lead treatment.

In headlines, some papers attributed the tragedy to the « inability » of the Philippine government in handling crisis, quoting legislators and academics as saying that the tragedy could have been avoided if it occurred in other countries.

The gunman, identified as 55-year-old former police captain Rolando Mendoza, was armed with an M-16 assault rifle. He was allegedly sacked from the Manila police over robbery and drug claims and during the hostage crisis he demanded his former job back.

Twenty HK tourists, three children and 17 adults, a HK tour guide and two Filipinos were aboard the bus when the gunman seized the vehicle demanding to be reinstated. He released nine people during police negotiations. Philippine police stormed the tour bus and shot the gunman to end the 12-hour hostage drama.

Speaking at press conference last night, CE Donald Tsang extended condolences to the families of those hurt or killed, pledging to provide assistance to the families of the victims. He added that resources and emergency measures were immediately mobilised and personnel were sent almost at the first instance to provide all possible assistance.

Describing it as a « major tragedy », Mr Tsang expressed disappointment with the handling of the incident by Filipino authorities, demanding the Philippine government to give a full account of what had happened.

The Government issued its top-level black travel alert for the Philippines last night after the tragedy. It planned to contact tour groups in the Philippines asking them to come back as soon as possible and was urging all upcoming tours to the Philippines be cancelled.

A flight was chartered to Manila last night for families of the tour members who were held hostage by the gunman. Medical staff, social workers, clinical psychologists and immigration officers led by US for S Lai Tung-kwok were also onboard the Cathay Pacific flight to assist. Another flight would depart at 8 am this morning, the papers added.

The SAR flags at all SARG offices would be flown at half-mast today as a token of mourning for victims of the hostage incident. All Government officials would cancel unnecessary public functions today to mourn the loss.

The HK Economic Times quoted a veteran HK police officer as questioning whether the hostages were killed by the Filipino police. He demanded an autopsy with participation from HK professionals, requesting the CPG to lend a helping hand on the issue.

The tactics of the police in not killing the gunman early in the incident were questioned after a photo of the gunman in full view in the open doorway of the bus became public.

CU criminologist Dennis Wong said if the incident had occurred in the US or on the Mainland, the gunman would have been killed much earlier. He commended the SARG for providing timely assistance by arranging flights for the safe return of HK tourists.

Three master plans for WKCD project further explained

The papers in moderate coverage, with many in their inside-page leads, reported the three master plans proposed for the West Kowloon Cultural District project.

Representatives from the three design teams addressed questions from architects, planners and artists at a forum at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, the first venue of the exhibition of designs which would rove around the city for the next three months.

Reports widely noted that the proposal by Foster + Partners emphasised the creation of a 23-hectare « city park » for the landscaped setting of the WKCD while the Dutch team gave more space to the arts and cultural facilities. Local architect Rocco Yim said his proposal transferred some office space to training facilities for the arts and culture.

Arts critic Mathias Woo urged the WKCD Authority to release the studies on the local arts scene conducted by the three teams to support their layout plans. Without the rationales, it was difficult to judge whether their hardware was well-designed and suitable for artists, he added. He also criticised the forum for not giving sufficient time for participants to voice their opinion.

The SCMP noted that a consultant report suggested the setting up of a fund to invest in foreign arts productions that would include the arts hub when touring Asia.

FS to visit Taiwan

The papers in moderate to routine coverage carried a Government announcement that Financial Secretary John Tsang would visit Taiwan between August 28 and 31 in his capacity as the Honorary Chairperson of the HK-Taiwan Economic and Cultural Co-operation and Promotion Council (ECCPC) to foster exchanges between the two places.

Reports noted that Mr Tsang was the highest-ranking official to visit Taiwan. He would deliver a keynote speech at a business luncheon, attend the first joint meeting of the ECCPC and the Taiwan-HK Economic and Cultural Co-operation Council (ECCC), and visit the National Palace Museum and private enterprises.

A few papers learned that the ECCPC and ECCC would discuss matters on air traffic rights, streamlining the visa application procedures for Taiwan residents and setting up an SARG office in Taipei.

Sing Tao Daily learned that the Government had no intention of signing any bilateral agreements with Taiwan and that the sensitive issue of renaming the Chung Hwa Travel Service to « Taiwan office in HK » (台灣駐港辦公室) would not be discussed in the forthcoming meeting.

CE to attend PPRD Forum

A few papers in routine coverage reported that CE Donald Tsang would pay a three-day visit to Fuzhou this Friday to attend the Sixth Pan-Pearl River Delta Regional Co-operation and Development Forum and Trade Fair.

Mr Tsang would also attend a joint conference with leaders of the nine PPRD provinces and the Macao SAR, as well as holding bilateral meetings with provincial leaders, the papers added.

Stock indices update

Hang Seng Index :	20,889.01	-92.81
Dow Jones Industrial Average :	10,174.41	-39.21
Nasdaq Composite Index :	2,159.63	-20.13
FTSE 100 Index :	5,234.84	+39.56

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 25, 2010

CPG and CE demand full account of Manila hostage tragedy

The papers continued to accord prominent text and pictorial coverage to the Manila hostage tragedy, with many playing up the sadness of the bereaved families and the injured while others highlighting the demands by the Central People's Government and Chief Executive Donald Tsang for a full account of the incident. All papers gave the story lead treatment.

In headlines, several papers reported that President Hu Jintao, Premier Wen Jiabao and Vice President Xi Jinping expressed condolences for the HK tourists killed and injured in the incident.

Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said he was appalled by the tragedy and called his Philippine counterpart to voice concerns, requesting for a thorough investigation into the incident.

The China National Tourism Administration strongly condemned the violence and immediately activated the emergency contact mechanism with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The SARG was in contact with the Philippine government, making sure that the maximum co-operation would be extended to the HK working team and the families in Manila.

The Philippine government was sending a high-level delegation to HK to meet and explain to officials what had happened in the incident.

'Qian Hai set to become Mainland-HK service hub'

The HK Economic Journal and the HK Economic Times in their inside-page leads quoted sources as saying that the authorities would soon announce details of the planning and development of Qian Hai, which would become the trial base for co-operation between the HK and Shenzhen in financial as well as service industries.

The HK Economic Times played up in headlines that Qian Hai would become the « SAR of SAR », a testing ground for special policies for the development of high-end services. It quoted a think tank as saying that the new planning arrangements would lead to further co-operation between the two places in areas of financial innovation and creative industries.

The paper understood that the planning proposal had recently been given an official confirmation by the State Council.

Stock indices update

Hang Seng Index :	20,658.71	-230.30
Dow Jones Industrial Average :	10,040.45	-133.96
Nasdaq Composite Index :	2,123.76	-35.87
FTSE 100 Index :	5,155.95	-78.89

THURSDAY, AUGUST 26, 2010

HK to observe 3-minute silence to mourn for hijack victims

The papers accorded prominent text and pictorial coverage to the return of the bodies of the eight victims and survivors of the Manila hostage tragedy last night, with many playing up the solemn honour ceremony held at the tarmac upon the arrival of the SARG's chartered flight shortly before 8pm. All papers gave the story lead treatment.

Chief Secretary Henry Tang, who boarded the flight upon its arrival to offer condolences to survivors and relatives who had flown to Manila, said the SARG would urge the Philippine government to provide a detailed account of the causes of death and injury. He and the families placed wreaths on the coffins before they were sent to Kwai Chung Public Mortuary.

Reports widely noted that CE Donald Tsang would lead principal officials to attend a ceremony for flag raising and lowering to half-mast at Golden Bauhinia Square and observe three minutes of silence in mourning at 8am today.

The papers also noted the remarks by S for S Ambrose Lee that an independent investigation might be conducted by HK police once the Coroner made a decision. He added that a death that occurred outside HK where the body was brought back must be reported to the Coroner, who might order a police investigation and possibly an autopsy.

The families of three victims had chosen to have autopsies on the victims to be carried out in HK on concerns that the hostages might have been killed by stray bullets fired by the Manila police.

The Equal Opportunity Commission last night urged the community to stay calm and refrain from shifting anger to Filipinos living or working in the city.

Meanwhile, four unions of migrant workers in HK issued a joint statement to express their anger and condolences over the incident. Mr Villanueva said his union would organise a prayer service in Chater Garden on Sunday morning to mourn the victims.

In a related development, Sing Tao Daily in an inside-page lead said before the tragedy took place, various countries had already issued travel alerts reminding citizens not to visit the Philippines where there were frequent terrorist attacks and violent crimes. The SARG, however, only issued a black outbound travel alert for the Philippines after the incident.

Commentator Johnny Lau suggested the SARG issue travel alerts for places where Chinese nationals had fallen victims in incidents like kidnaps and attacks.

HK the third preferred tourist destination in Asia-Pacific region : poll

A few papers in routine to moderate coverage reported that a survey jointly conducted by Visa and Pacific Asia Travel Association found that HK was the third preferred destination for those who planned to visit the Asia-Pacific region.

The survey on 6,714 people found that while 40 per cent of the respondents would consider visiting Australia or Japan in the future two years, 31 per cent chose HK, of which Mainland and Taiwan interviewees accounted for the majority.

Travel Industry Council's former chairman Ronnie Ho said limited tourist spots in HK and the reputation of being « shoppers' paradise » were not attractive enough to lure foreign tourists.

He took the view that HK should make full use of its edge of being an aviation hub and build up its image of being the gateway to the Mainland, adding that new and diversified tourist attractions should be developed.

Stock indices update

Hang Seng Index :	20,634.98	-23.73
Dow Jones Industrial Average :	10,060.06	+19.61
Nasdaq Composite Index :	2,141.54	+17.78
FTSE 100 Index :	5,109.40	-46.55

FRIDAY, AUGUST 27, 2010

Coroner orders autopsies on hijack victims

The papers in prominent coverage reported the return of Jason Leung, who suffered serious head injuries in the Manila hijack, and his mother from a medical flight yesterday. The teenager was taken to Tuen Mun Hospital where he received a brain surgery.

Many papers played up the orders by the Coroner to perform autopsies on the eight victims killed in Manila.

Speaking at Legislative council's Security Panel special meeting yesterday, S for S Ambrose Lee said the Coroner decided that an investigation into the deaths by the police be carried out. The Coroner would decide whether an inquest should be held after receiving reports from the police.

He added that HK forensic experts had taken part in some of the post-mortem examinations in Manila and the HK police flew to Manila on August 24 to take testimony.

Lawmakers demanded the SARG take a more active role in the investigations by the Philippine government.

The Secretary for Security said the black travel alert would not be lifted if the risk of travel had not been lowered.

Some papers in headlines said the visit of a high-level delegation of the Philippine government to Beijing and HK to explain the hijack incident had been postponed.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Jiang Yu said the Central People's Government believed the most important thing at the moment was to investigate the incident thoroughly.
A Philippine presidential spokesman said the delegation, which had been scheduled to leave yesterday morning, was still awaiting « confirmation » from the Mainland.

Meanwhile, some papers highlighted the point that the Philippines' elite police unit had been kept on standby near the hijacked coach as the Manila police chief only ordered the ill-equipped local police officers to carry out the rescue operations.

Manila Police District Chief Superintendent Rodolfo Magtibay admitted that although the Special Action Force was in the vicinity, he did not mobilise them as he believed the Manila police's SWAT team could handle the situation.

The papers reported that on the stroke of 8am yesterday, the city went silent for three minutes to mourn for the victims of the Manila hijack tragedy, led by CE Donald Tsang and the Principal Officials who attended a solemn ceremony in Golden Bauhinia Square.

Reports also noted that a cross-party procession would be held this Sunday from Victoria Park to Chater Garden.

Bank fails appeal against privacy law violation

In moderate coverage, the papers reported that Wing Lung Bank had lost its appeal against the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data's ruling that the bank had violated privacy laws by transferring a customer's personal information to an insurer.

The HK Economic Journal in its headlines said it was the first substantive case of a bank being found to have violated the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance.

Reports noted that a woman had lodged a complaint with the privacy watchdog in 2008 accusing the bank of transferring her personal data to insurance company Cigna after she had successfully applied for a credit card from the bank.

The privacy commissioner had ruled that the bank had violated the law but the bank had later lodged an appeal with the Administrative Appeals Board.

The board was of the view that the font size of terms for personal data collection in the credit card application form was too small and that they had misled applicants to believe that their personal data would only be transferred within different departments of the bank. It therefore rejected the appeal.

A spokesman for the bank said it respected the ruling and would follow the guidelines issued by the privacy commissioner and the HKMA.

Prevalence of superbug in public hospitals warned

The HK Economic Times in an inside-page lead reported that an analysis conducted by the HKU's Centre of Infection found that the rate of CRAB, the situation under which superbug acinetobacter baumannii had developed resistance to a strong antibiotic Carbapenem, had recorded a 10-fold surge in a decade, a trend that was apparently different from the stable increase as revealed by the Hospital Authority (HA).

The paper said according to the data collected in a public hospital cluster by the centre, 29.4 per cent of the acinetobacter baumannii infections recorded in 2008 were resistant to Carbapenem, compared with 2.6 per cent in 1997.

The Centre's president Ho Pak-leung said the CRAB had already established a foothold and that there were cases in public hospitals in which patients had died after having infected with CRAB.

The paper reported that the Communicable Diseases Watch released by the Centre for Health Protection last week only revealed that there were more than four cases of multi-resistant acinetobacter baumannii (MRAB) a year but it did not mention the drug-resistant situation of CRAB.

Dr Ho criticised the HA's surveillance for failing to reflect the true picture and having underestimated the gravity of the situation.

State Council endorses Qian Hai development plan

Several papers in good coverage, with some quoted an on-line report of People's Daily, noted that the State Council had agreed in principle a proposal by Shenzhen to develop Qian Hai into a new show-case platform for co-operation between HK and the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in modern service industries.

The State Council was of the view that the advantage of HK as an international financial centre should be fully utilised under the development plan.

Some papers said in headlines the endorsement of the plan was a “gift” from the CPG to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Shenzhen SEZ.

Stock indices update

Hang Seng Index :	20,612.06	-22.92
Dow Jones Industrial Average :	9,985.81	-74.25
Nasdaq Composite Index :	2,118.69	-22.85
FTSE 100 Index :	5,155.84	+46.44

Revue de presse du 20 août 2010

Secrétariat de l'Association — 2010-08-20T15:19:18Z

Sommaire

Dragonair flight attendants back industrial action

The papers in good coverage, with Sing Pao and the Oriental Daily News in their leads, reported that more than one-third of Dragonair's cabin crew yesterday voted for an industrial action this month if their demand for less last-minute changes to rosters could not be met.

The HK Dragon Airlines Flight Attendants Association said it would only resort to a strike if the management failed to offer a better solution to ease their workload.

Association chairman Winnie Poon said the airline company was so short of hands that 41 flight attendants were asked to take extra shifts upon landing in HK last month, and half of the cabin crew on stand-by were asked to report for duty, twice the normal rate.

She added that the union was inclined to stage a one-day strike on weekdays at the end of the month if talks failed.

Inflight services general manager Cecilia Leung said the company was eager to resume talks, adding that contingency measures were in place if negotiations broke down. She pointed out that the company had recruited 70 crew members in June who would join the team in October after training, which might help ease the workload.

A spokesman for Cathay Pacific Airways said it was too early to say if it had sufficient manpower to lend to Dragonair in the event of a strike, the SCMP noted.

Reports also noted that the tourism sector was concerned about the impact of Dragonair's industrial action.

Travel Industry Council executive director Joseph Tung said as August was a peak travel season, and Dragonair operated about one-third of the flights from HK to the Mainland, the tourism sector hoped that the airline company and its staff could reach a deal and avert a strike. His view was shared by major travel agencies including Hong Thai Travel Services and EGL Tours.

Govt considers 'Rent to HomeBuy Scheme

Quoting Government sources, the HK Economic Journal in its front-page lead story reported that the Government was considering launching a series of measures to assist homebuyers, including identifying sites earmarked for public housing to build a new type of « new HOS » units modelling on the “Rent to HomeBuy Scheme” in the UK.

According to the scheme launched in the UK in 2008, successful applicants could rent housing units at a price lower than market rate for three years to enable them to save enough money for down payment should they decide to buy the units.

The sources pointed out that the chances for launching the new scheme were high to alleviate the demand for housing, stressing that details had not been finalised. He added that further studies had to be conducted to minimise opposing voices.

As it would not be easy to identify sites for the new scheme, the quickest way out would be to build new flats under this scheme on sites earmarked for public housing development, the paper said.

Other measures up the Government's sleeve included resumption of the construction of HOS and re-launching the Home Starter Loan Scheme. But the sources said that the two measures could not be pushed onto the market in one go and a decision had not been made on whether it would be announced at the upcoming Policy Address.

Expressing support for the proposed scheme, economist Andy Kwan took the view that the new scheme would enable prospective home buyers to save enough money during the first few years to purchase a home. However, he cautioned that to build these new flats on sites earmarked for public housing development would lengthen the average waiting time for public housing applicants. He did not support re-launching the Home Starter Loan Scheme as the risk was rather high.

Debate over sale restrictions to cool overheated property market

The SCMP in its front-page lead reported that a debate was heating up on whether restrictions should be imposed on foreign investors buying properties in HK.

The paper noted that more than a third of new luxury residential properties sold in the first half of this year were purchased by Mainlanders, up from about a fifth last year.

It also noted that Mainlanders were purchasing a bigger proportion of cheaper properties, accounting for 13 per cent of 5,618 new flats each sold for less than $12 million in the first half of this year.

The Land Registry records showed that Mainland investors had accounted for at least 35 per cent of the 1,012 new flats sold for more than $12 million between January and June, accounting for $8 billion in all, up 22.6 per cent of 1,684 transactions in the second half of last year.

HKU's Chau Kwong-wing said as Mainland investors had accounted for a substantial proportion of property transactions, it would be difficult for the SARG to ask developers to build cheaper flats when selling luxurious properties was such a lucrative business.

Although he believed that excessive Mainland investment in the local property market would lead to a rise in the prices of cheaper flats, he had reservations about banning Mainlanders from buying properties in HK.

Autotoll transfers customers' personal data

The papers continued to give good coverage to the transfer of customers' personal data by enterprises, playing up the latest case in which electric toll service provider, Autotoll, had admitted transferring clients' information to two insurance companies in 2003.

FTU legislator Wong Kwok-hing had recently received complaints from over 30 people saying that they suspected that Autotoll had transferred their personal information to third parties as they had received promotional letters and calls from the company's insurance agents.

An Autotoll spokesman explained that Autotoll Insurance Agent Ltd was the Autotoll's solely-owned subsidiary company, adding that there was no question of transferring personal data.

The spokesman also revealed that the company had given customers' information to two insurers for one-off promotional events in 2003, stressing that the company had stopped the data transfer after it had revised its privacy policy.

Meanwhile, a Standard Chartered Bank spokesman admitted that the bank had transferred customers' data to a call centre for marketing of insurance products but refused to give the number of clients or amount of money involved.

Its executive director Benjamin Hung held that the bank had never engaged in selling personal data.

The HK Economic Times in an inside-page lead highlighted a case in which a woman was denied by HSBC and BoC(HK) to open a bank account as she had refused to give them details of her income and personal assets. She would later lodge a complaint with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Personal Data, the paper added.

In related developments, some papers quoted Permanent Secretary (Financial Services) Au King-chi as saying that the Government was very concerned about the transfer of customers' personal data to financial institutions and it had suggested the Hong Kong Monetary Auhtority, the Security and Futures Commission and Office of the Commissioner of Insurance set up communication platforms with the privacy watchdog to review privacy codes for relevant trades regularly.

Stock indices update

Hang Seng Index :	21,072.46	+49.73
Dow Jones Industrial Average :	10,271.21	-144.33
Nasdaq Composite Index :	2,178.95	-36.75
FTSE 100 Index :	5,211.29	-91.58

revue de presse du 19 aout 2010

Secrétariat de l'Association — 2010-08-19T09:38:58Z

Sommaire

Government to increase land supply : Acting FS

Some papers in good coverage, with five in their leads, reported the remarks by acting Financial Secretary Carrie Lam, made in the wake of the well-above-market-expectation prices fetched from the land sales on Tuesday, that next year's Application List would significantly increase land supply.

Saying that the auction result reflected developers' view of the market and the value of land in certain areas, she stressed that the Government had put in a lot of efforts on land supply. She was confident that the supply for next year would be more than the 9,000 units provided under the current list.

She pledged that the Government would closely monitor the development of the property market and review the effectiveness of the latest measures introduced in a bid to curb surging property prices.

A Government spokesman said the Application List would be announced in March next year and Mrs Lam was only mapping out the direction. The spokesman, however, stressed that there were many other chances to increase land supply including URA projects and developments along the MTR rail line.

In its lead story, the HK Economic Times in headlines expected that the Government would put up sites for sale in three directions - short, medium and long term measures, represented by the MTRC's Nam Cheong Station project, Kai Tak development and the Koo Tung North plan.

While the short term measures would target at speculative activities, in the long run, it would have to rely on increasing land supply to resolve the housing problem, the paper reported, estimating that the lands allocated would be able to provide about10, 000 units which would be enough to meet the housing demand for some years.

The Real Estate Developers Association of HK did not oppose the provision of more land for the construction of small to medium-sized flats, believing that it would meet people's aspirations for home ownership.

The association, however, was of the view that the measure would not have immediate effect to cool the overheated property market and its secretary general Louis Loong suggested that the Government should include the Kai Tak and the North Point Estate sites in the Application List.

The professional body's doubts over the timing of the measure were shared by many surveyors who reiterated that the latest step taken by the Government could not control the market effectively, with Yue Tai Hing's Law Sau-yiu describing the measures as « third rate ».

BL23 legislative exercise not on Govt agenda

In moderate coverage, the HK Economic Times quoted sources as saying that Chief Executive Donald Tsang had no intention to introduce BL23 legislation in his remaining tenure of about two years, adding that even the pro-establishment camp considered that this was not the right time to do so.

The paper said senior Government management held that it would be difficult for the Administration to secure support for the legislative exercise from more than half of the legislators under the current political situation. The pro-establishment lawmakers might face public pressure and change their supporting stance.

Privacy watchdog warns The Link for transferring personal data

The Oriental Daily News and The Sun in moderate coverage reported that the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data had issued a written warning to The Link Management for breaching the principle of protecting personal data.

The two papers said last year, The Link had been found to have asked public housing carpark applicants to provide personal data of themselves as well as their family members. The Link said that it had the right to provide such data to third parties for marketing purposes.

Some carpark tenants had lodged complaints with the privacy commissioner. A spokesman for the commissioner was quoted as saying that a written warning had been issued to The Link in March for breaching the principle of protecting personal data and The Link had pledged that it would stop such practices.

A spokesman for The Link said all data collected would only be used in the operation and management of its car parks and this complied with relevant laws, including the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance. The spokesman said The Link had never sold and would not sell any personal data to other organisations.

HK Human Rights Monitor's Law Yuk-kai took the view that HK's laws for protecting personal data were outdated and criticised the slow procedures in reviewing the relevant laws.

In an inside-page lead, the HK Daily News reported that a number of legislators had called on CE Donald Tsang to suggest measures in his upcoming Policy Address to better protect privacy.

Deadlock over setting the minimum wage floor

The SCMP in its front-page lead reported that employers and unionists were deadlocked over $2 for the territory's first statutory minimum wage level, with employers accepting only $28 per hour and unionists insisting on no less than $30 per hour.

The paper, quoting a person familiar with the negotiation, said that members of the Provisional Minimum Wage Commission were expected to recommend a wage level to the CE by the end of the month. But there were suggestions that the announcement of the wage level would not be made until next month or even in the CE's Policy Address in October, rather than at the end of this month.

Another person familiar with the situation said that even if a recommendation was finally made, it was highly likely that it would not be made public by the commission immediately, the paper added.

Protest against tram fare hike

Some papers in news and pictorial coverage reported that about 30 web surfers boarded a tram in North Point and travelled to Shek Tong Tsui yesterday during which they chanted slogans and blew vuvuzela to protest against HK Tramways' application for a 25 per cent fare hike.

Chung Shek-yan, convenor of the group, criticised HK Tramways for ignoring the plight of the grass roots, worrying that the fare hike would trigger a wave of fare rises by other public transport operators.

Meanwhile, Sing Tao Daily and Sing Pao in their inside-page leads, with a few papers in routine coverage, reported that the local food prices were on the rise following a series of natural disasters on the Mainland and the appreciation of RMB.

Sing Tao Daily said the retail prices of chilled poultry had increased by 30 to 40 per cent since July. The industry estimated that the prices would further increase by 10 to 20 per cent when approaching the Mid-Autumn Festival.

The prices of some fish and vegetables had also increased by 40 to 50 per cent in a month, Sing Pao reported. Lingnan U's Ho Lok-sang believed that the rising food prices were caused by inflation on the Mainland and the appreciation of RMB.

Death knell for HK's role as middleman after 60 years

Taiwan's legislature backs free trade agreement with Beijing

The death knell sounded this week on Hong Kong's six-decade role as a middleman across the Taiwan Strait with the final seal of approval on the landmark free trade agreement between Beijing and Taipei.
The island's legislature approved on Tuesday the Economic Co-operation Framework Agreement (ECFA) after a marathon debate and numerous protests. The agreement between the two governments was signed earlier this year.

Hong Kong now faces the difficult task of forging a new strategy to take advantage of the growing ties between the two markets, but commentators warn that it is expected to take time and effort.
The deal, which further liberalises trade barriers between the mainland and Taiwan, will fuel competition and effectively certifies the end of Hong Kong's role as a bridge in the flow of people and goods and trade. It is due to take effect early next year.

The vice-president of the Chinese Manufacturers' Association, Eddy Li Sau-hung, said that some Hong Kong entrepreneurs were in talks to co-operate with Taiwanese investors to break into the mainland market, particularly the service sector. « Hong Kong can no longer play its middleman role, » he said. The agreement is about « the political integration between China and Taiwan ».

The ECFA, which grants Taiwanese greater access to the mainland's insurance, financial and banking sectors as well as reducing tariffs, draws the two sides of the strait to their closest point since the Kuomintang fled to Taiwan in 1949. However, some pro-independence supporters on the island suggest the agreement is a Trojan Horse to hide Beijing's true ambition of reuniting with the island.

The ECFA calls for Beijing to lower tariffs on 539 imports from Taiwan valued at US$13.8 billion, or about 16 per cent of the island's exports to the mainland last year. In return, Taiwan will slash tariffs on 267 items from the mainland worth US$2.86 billion, or about 10.5 per cent of the mainland's shipments to Taiwan last year.
The two sides have also signed an accord to co-operate on intellectual property rights.

The mainland has added direct flights between Fujian and Taipei and cut airfares by an average of 15 per cent in the past month, leaving Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific Airways and Hong Kong Dragon Airlines watching nervously. The Hong Kong-Taipei route was previously one of their most profitable.

Priscilla Lau Pui-king, a Hong Kong representative of the National People's Congress and a former associate head of the department of business studies at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, said the city needed to map out a strategy and new role in the cross-strait economic landscape. « The more direct links between Taiwan and China, the bigger the possibility of fewer Taiwanese visiting Hong Kong, » she said. « Hong Kong has to … pursue closer ties with Taiwan. »
Lau said Hong Kong could attract more Taiwanese firms to list in Hong Kong, using the city's strength as an international capital and financial hub. She said the governments of Hong Kong, Macau and Guangdong should join forces to capitalise on closer strait relations.
« They could have been more active in pursuing and materialising co-operation in the Pearl River Delta region, » she said. « However, it's unfortunate that they regard each other as rivals even though on the surface they co-operate with each other. »
She said an example was the lack of co-ordination in tourism services among Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau, which could be presented as a single destination.
Guangdong governor Huang Huahua is this week leading a 1,000-member delegation to Taipei with a shopping list worth US$6.6 billion.

Stock indices update

Hang Seng Index :	21,022.73	-114.70
Dow Jones Industrial Average :	10,415.54	+9.69
Nasdaq Composite Index :	2,215.70	+6.26
FTSE 100 Index :	5,302.87	-47.68

Revue de presse du 18 août 2010

Secrétariat de l'Association — 2010-08-18T12:45:42Z

Sommaire

Two residential sites fetch $7.61b at land auction

The papers reported prominently, with 10 in their leads, that two residential sites in Hung Hom and Ho Man Tin went under the hammer yesterday for $7.61 billion, at least 20 per cent more than market expectations despite the fact that new measures had just been released by the Government to cool the overheated property market.

In its financial page lead, Sing Tao Daily also noted that the total revenue generated from land sales in the first five months of the current financial year had exceeded $33.9 billion, a 5.4 per cent rise over the revenue generated from land sales in the 1997/98 financial year.

Victor Li of Cheung Kong (Holdings) who purchased both plots, however, stressed that the developer had decided to acquire the lands because they could tie in with the company's development plans. He believed that the high price would have no special indicative effect on future land sales.

But some surveyors were of the view that the high price fetched for the sites showed that the latest Government measures did not have much force in cooling the market, forecasting that the heat in the market would intensify further.

Jobless rate drops to 4.3pc

The papers in moderate coverage, with a few in their inside-page leads, reported that the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dropped by 0.3 percentage point from 4.6 per cent in April to June to 4.3 per cent in May to July, the lowest level since November 2008 to January 2009.

Many papers noted that the jobless rate of the group aged between 15 and 24 went up by one percentage point to 13.2 per cent.

Secretary for Labour and Welfare Matthew Cheung said the drop in the unemployment rate was mainly due to the strengthened hiring sentiment of corporations given the sustained economic growth.

Noting that the employment situation would still hinge on the overall economic growth and the pace of job creation, he said the uncertainty stemming from the fragile nature of recovery in the United States and Europe remained a major cause for concern, adding that the Government would continue to be vigilant and monitor developments closely and leave no stone unturned to help young people find jobs.

Economist Andy Kwan considered the drop in the unemployment rate as unexpected, believing that the rise in property prices in July had pushed up the economic growth and led to the creation of more new jobs.

‘CE to relaunch BL23 legislative exercise

Apple Daily in an inside-page lead reported that there were speculations that the Central People's Government intended to ask CE Donald Tsang to relaunch the BL23 legislative exercise, adding that political circles in HK, including the pro-establishment DAB, had raised objections to the idea.

Quoting sources from the political circles, the paper said while Mr Tsang was reluctant to relaunch the BL23 legislative work, the ruling team understood that this could not be delayed. The Government had started to explore various legislative proposals, including a revised proposal incorporating major concessions in 2003, hoping to minimise the impact caused by the legislative exercise.

DAB legislator Ip Kwok-him was quoted as saying that his party took the view that the Government had to convince the public that the BL23 legislation would not affect their daily lives and the freedom of speech, but he did not see that the Government had done anything to lobby public support.

More banks admit transferring customers' personal data

The papers continued to accord good coverage to the transfer of customers' personal data to third parties by enterprises, with some papers playing up the fact that more retail banks had admitted personal data transfers while others focused on privacy commissioner's investigations into three telecom companies.

Reports noted that Wing Hang Bank in a press statement said it had provided clients' personal information to two unconnected insurance companies for marketing purposes but such practices had been terminated in the first quarter of last year.

Wing Lung Bank conceded that it had co-operated with an insurance company to promote insurance products to its customers, saying that it had confirmed that the insurance company had destroyed all personal data after the end of the promotion event in 2008.

Citic Bank International issued a press statement saying that it had in the past partnered with insurance companies in offering exclusive financial products to selected customers and that the business partners had destroyed all clients' personal information at the completion of the programmes.

Quoting sources, the HK Economic Journal said the six banks which were found by an HKMA survey to have sold or transferred customers' information were ICBC(Asia), Citicbank, Citic Bank International, Wing Lung Bank, Wing Hang Bank and Fubon Bank.

Meanwhile, the papers said Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data Allan Chiang yesterday met with Deputy Director-General of Telecommunications Ha Yung-kuen to discuss data sharing practices by telecom companies.

Mr Chiang disclosed that the privacy watchdog was investigating five complaints against three telecom operators over the transfer of customers' personal data to other companies.

'More country park enclaves owned by private firms'

The SCMP in a front-page story reported that private companies owned about one fifth of the unprotected sites in HK's country parks, with some of them having a record of damage or development.

Of the 77 sites released by the Government, 53 sites were without protection and at least 10 of them were partially owned by private companies, covering 1,300 hectares, the paper noted.

Conservancy Association's Peter Li urged the Government to put all the development-prone enclaves under the protection of a statutory zoning plan.

The paper also noted that the ownership of these sites was linked with rural leadership or political leaders, pointing out that one of the landowners at Lai Chi Chong was Maxland (Asia), a director of which was Heung Yee Kuk councillor Leung Wo-ping.

MTRC unveils XRL West Kowloon terminus design

The papers in moderate coverage reported that the MTRC yesterday unveiled its plan for the West Kowloon terminus for the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-HK Express Rail Link, which would go to public tender before the end of the year.

Reports noted that most of the 11-hectare terminus would be underground, and that it would employ energy-saving measures, such as seawater cooling plants for air conditioning and energy-efficient lighting.

MTRC's general manager-XRL Paul Lo hoped that the terminus would be a place for people to spend their leisure time and enjoy the green features in open areas.

Taiwan approves historic trade pact

Taiwan's parliament on Tuesday approved a historic but controversial trade deal with the mainland which is expected to bring the two former rivals closer than ever before.

Getting the Taiwanese legislature's approval was seen as crucial in terms of securing legitimacy for the Economic Co-operation Framework Agreement (ECFA) – by far the island's most wide-ranging accord yet with Beijing

“The ECFA is extremely important to Taiwan if it hopes to avoid being marginalised economically amid an increasing number of trade blocs,” said Cheng Ching-ling, a legislator with the pro-Beijing Kuomintang (KMT) party.

The mainland is Taiwan's largest trading partner, its largest investment destination, and now also home to a growing number of Taiwanese people.
The ECFA was passed with 68 votes for and none against. Members of the anti-Beijing opposition refused to take part in the vote, instead voicing protests, reporters on the scene said.

Taiwan's opposition had voiced vehement opposition to ECFA since it was signed in June, but in the end it allowed the deal to pass through the 112-seat parliament after just a day of debate.
“The situation right now is pretty much like a dog barking at a train, and we actually can do nothing about it,” said Tsai Huang-lang, a legislator for the main opposition Democratic Progressive Party.
“Once the agreement becomes effective, which is inevitable now, Taiwan will lose its sovereignty and become like Hong Kong and Macau.”

The ECFA has been a major priority for Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou of the KMT, who swept to power in 2008 on a vow to improve the island's economy through better ties with Beijing.
Approval was never in doubt given the KMT's absolute majority in parliament, but the legislative green light was nevertheless seen as important in order to legitimise the pact.

While seeking domestic backing for the ECFA in the months prior to its signing in June, President Ma repeatedly said that he would seek parliamentary approval for the agreement.
The ECFA does not explicitly call on Taiwan and China to get the support of their parliaments, saying simply that they must complete “due process” and then notify each other.
When Beijing and Taipei signed the agreement in June, they said it would take effect “within six months”, but they have released no detailed timetable.

“Ma Ying-jeou is selling out Taiwan” and “ECFA means more unemployment,” were among the slogans chanted by the protesters outside parliament, reflecting common worries among supporters of the opposition.
A group of protesters stripped down to their underwear, saying their protest symbolised Taiwan losing everything to the mainland.

The ECFA has been widely characterised as the boldest step yet towards reconciliation between the former rivals, who split after the end of a civil war in 1949.
KMT politicians have hailed the pact, saying it will bolster the island's economy, but the DPP and its allies claim that it will undermine Taiwan's de facto independence.

Although Taiwan and the mainland have been governed separately for more than six decades, Beijing considers the island China's territory and has vowed to get it back, by force if necessary.
Tung Chen-yuan, a China expert at Taipei's National Chengchi University, said the pact will benefit Taiwan rather than China, even though it may not help the island in the short term by as much as the government claims.
“It will bolster the confidence of investors – both from here and abroad – as they believe lots of business opportunities will emerge from the closer links between the two sides,” he said.

Problems identified in 17 newly purchased fire engines

The Sun in its front-page lead and the Oriental Daily News reported that various problems had been identified in the 17 newly-purchased French-made fire engines fitted with hydraulic platforms.

The papers noted that the Fire service Department decided to temporarily suspend the use of these new vehicles due to problems in discharging water and risk damage to the hoses.

An FSD spokesman said an independent consultancy company would conduct a comprehensive check and if it was found that the problems were due to the design, the authorities would consider pursuing the matter with the manufacturer.

Stock indices update

Hang Seng Index :	21,137.43	+25.31
Dow Jones Industrial Average :	10,405.85	+103.84
Nasdaq Composite Index :	2209.44	+27.57
FTSE 100 Index :	5,350.55	+74.45