Record rainfall causes flooding in Hong Kong days after typhoon

Record rainfall in Hong Kong caused widespread flooding in the early hours of Friday, disrupting road and rail traffic just days after the city dodged major damage from a super typhoon.

The Hong Kong Observatory, the city's weather agency, reported hourly rainfall of 158.1 millimetres at its headquarters in the hour leading up to midnight, the highest since records began in 1884.

Late on Thursday, authorities in the Chinese city said various districts had been flooded and emergency services were conducting rescue operations. Members of the public were instructed to stay in a safe place.

"Heavy rain will bring flash floods," the Observatory warned. "Residents living in close proximity to rivers should stay alert to weather conditions and should consider evacuation" if their homes are flooded, it added.

No injuries were reported in the early hours of Friday.

Earlier in the week, Typhoon Haikui left a trail of destruction in Taiwan before crossing the strait and making landfall in China's Fujian province on Tuesday.

Hong Kong's observatory said the latest torrential rain was brought by the "trough of low pressure associated with (the) remnant of Haikui".

The city's Mass Transit Railway announced that it would partially suspend service on one of its lines after a station in the Wong Tai Sin district was flooded, with another handful of stations also affected.

Footage circulated on social media showed an MTR train not stopping at Wong Tai Sin station, which had floodwater on its platform.

Other video clips showed cars and buses half-submerged on main roads.

Heavy rain was also reported in the neighbouring Chinese tech hub of Shenzhen.

Shenzhen prepared to discharge water from its reservoirs, according to Hong Kong officials, which they said could lead to flooding in parts of northern Hong Kong as a result.

Southern China was hit the previous weekend by two typhoons in quick succession -- Saola and Haikui -- though Hong Kong avoided a feared direct hit.

Tens of millions of people in the densely populated coastal areas of southern China had sheltered indoors ahead of the storms.

Climate change has increased the intensity of tropical storms, with more rain and stronger gusts leading to flash floods and coastal damage, experts say.

Agence France-Presse

Hong Kong foreign domestic workers 'abandoned' in COVID crisis

Hong Kong's foreign domestic workers are being "abandoned" in the current coronavirus wave sweeping the city, with some forced to sleep rough or being denied treatment after testing positive, charities warned Friday.

The Chinese financial hub is currently in the throes of its worst-ever coronavirus outbreak, registering thousands of confirmed cases a day as hospitals reach breaking point.

Hong Kongers live in one of the world's most densely packed cities and rely on some 370,000 foreign domestic workers, the vast majority women from the Philippines and Indonesia who cook, clean, and look after their families.

Foreign domestic workers must live with their employers, cannot swap jobs easily, and are only entitled to one day off a week.

On Friday a coalition of groups representing migrant workers said the already grim pandemic conditions have plunged further in the current outbreak.

Some workers had been sacked by employers after testing positive, forcing them to sleep outdoors. Others found themselves denied treatment at hospitals because they had lost their jobs.

Eni Lestari, an Indonesian domestic worker and activist, said her peers had been on the "frontlines" helping families throughout the pandemic.

"Now we are being neglected, we are being denied services, we are being abandoned," she told reporters. 

"We are very alarmed and we are very angry," she added.

- Calls for compassion -

Activists said many Hong Kong employers were refusing to let their domestic workers leave often cramped apartments even on their day off, while some had been fired for taking their rest day. 

"For us staying home means we have to work," said Dolores Balladares Pallaez from the Asian Migrants Coordinating Body, adding workers needed "compassion and help" from both the government and wider society.

The coalition said Hong Kong police had also ramped up social distancing fines each weekend for domestic workers, adding that penalties can be higher than their monthly wage. 

Like mainland China, Hong Kong has stuck to a rigid zero-Covid policy that largely kept the virus out but left the international business hub cut off the last two years.

Those defenses have now come crashing down after the highly infectious Omicron variant entered the local community after infected flight crew and residents returned from overseas.

On Thursday authorities announced more than 12,000 positive cases. Prior to the current outbreak, Hong Kong recorded just 12,000 infections for the whole pandemic.

The current outbreak has caught the government off guard with few preparations in place for dealing with zero-Covid being breached.

Authorities have since scrambled to locate thousands of hotel rooms and unused public housing blocks to isolate the infected as well as a location to build a temporary hospital.

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam, who has currently ruled out a China-style citywide lockdown, said some 20,000 hotel rooms had now been located.

Agence France-Presse

Asian markets down as investors look to uncertain 2022

HONG KONG - Asian stocks were mostly down in Wednesday trade as a "Santa Claus rally" showed signs of fatigue and continued fears over the Omicron variant -- as well as uncertainty about economic prospects for 2022 -- weighed on markets.

Covid-19 cases have surged across the world, prompting governments to impose new measures to limit contagion while the travel industry faced thousands of flight cancellations.

Warnings from the World Health Organization that the risk from the variant remains "very high" have compounded the sense that the pandemic is far from over, though data showing a reduced risk of hospitalization has lifted spirits.

Reflecting the uncertainty, Tokyo closed down in thin holiday trade on Wednesday, with the market weighed down by US futures losses.

Seoul was also down, while Sydney and Wellington rose. Europe opened mixed, with London's FTSE slightly up while Paris and Frankfurt fell. 

In China, markets fell, in a slide analysts partly attributed to losses in shares of major liquor brands -- including Kweichow Moutai, one of the world's biggest drinks companies.

"The drop is mostly contributed by some blue chips, in particular the baijiu names," Zhang Gang, a strategist at Central China Securities, told Bloomberg.

"It's likely that some funds want to cash out before the year-end after the recent rebound."

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was down as investors eyed uncertain prospects for 2022 as well as a continued debt crisis in the mainland's property market.

A continued regulatory clampdown by Beijing on overseas listings by Chinese firms has also weighed down markets -- though expectations that the country's central bank will add further stimulus in 2022 offered some hope.

FITS AND STARTS 

But trading volumes remain thin going into the new year, when prospects for global growth and the long-term impact of the Omicron variant are expected to become clearer.

Moody's economist Mark Zandi said in a note the Omicron wave would dent growth in the first quarter, but "not have a material impact" on 2022 overall because of a rebound later in the year.

"Even after the Omicron wave abates, there will almost surely be others. But we expect each new wave to be less disruptive to the healthcare system and economy than the wave before it," he said.

Katie Nixon, chief investment officer for Northern Trust Wealth Management, was also upbeat, saying her firm was "pretty constructive going into 2022".

"We're having fits and starts related to this Omicron variant of course. This will create maybe demand delayed but not destroyed," she told Bloomberg TV.

There was also optimism on oil markets, with crude holding a roughly one-month high on hopes that the Omicron variant will not dent global travel in the ways many had feared.

Agence France-Presse

Facebook halts project for undersea data cable to Hong Kong

SAN FRANCISCO, United States - Facebook has decided to halt its efforts to build a trans-Pacific undersea cable that would have connected California and Hong Kong, due to tensions between the United States and China.

"Due to ongoing concerns from the US government about direct communication links between the United States and Hong Kong, we have decided to withdraw our FCC application," a Facebook spokesperson told AFP on Wednesday, referring to the Federal Communications Commission.

"We look forward to working with all the parties to reconfigure the system to meet the concerns of the US government," the spokesperson added.

The social networking giant and several telecom companies filed their first construction permit in 2018, to connect two sites in California to Hong Kong and Taiwan.

The project was supposed to facilitate communications through fiber optics capable of carrying large volumes of data with very low waiting times.

But Washington resisted, because of perceived potential national security risks regarding China, which has tightened its control over Hong Kong.

In June, the US Department of Justice recommended that a trans-Pacific undersea cable proposed by Google and Facebook bypass Hong Kong.

The cable, named the Pacific Light Cable Network, was originally intended to link the United States, Taiwan, Hong Kong and the Philippines.

The Hong Kong landing station "would expose US communications traffic to collection" by Beijing, the department said.

The FCC gave Google permission in April 2020 to operate the link between North America and Taiwan.

Agence France-Presse

Hong Kong imposes COVID-19 lockdown Tyrone Siu, Reuters

A medical worker in a protective suit helps a resident to register outside a residential area at Jordan district where tens of thousands of its residents will be placed in a lockdown to contain a new outbreak of COVID-19 in Hong Kong on Friday. The lockdown is the first such measure the city has taken since the start of the pandemic, with Hong Kong reporting far fewer infections than other major world cities, recording less than 10,000 in the past year. 

-reuters-

Hong Kong pink dolphins enjoy comeback as pandemic slows marine traffic

HONG KONG - Rare pink dolphins are returning to the waters between Hong Kong and Macau after the coronavirus pandemic halted ferries, but scientists remain deeply concerned about their long-term survival in one of the world's busiest sea lanes.

The tell-tale flash of pink leaping from the waters alerts Naomi Brennan to the presence of a local Chinese white dolphin and she jots the animal's location into a GPS device.

Conservationists like Brennan regularly board boats in the Pearl River Delta to document how the mammals, known for their eye-catching pink coloring, are faring.

"Today we encountered 3 different groups of dolphins -- six adults and two sub-adults," she explained.

"They were engaging in a range of behavior, from feeding to traveling and socializing."

For years keeping tabs on the dolphins has been a disheartening task.

The population has fallen by 70-80 percent in the past 15 years in what is one of the world's most industrialized estuaries.

But this year their numbers have bounced back -- and they have the pandemic to thank.

Ferries between Hong Kong and Macau have been suspended since February, providing local marine scientists an opportunity to study how the mammals have adapted to the "unprecedented quiet." 

"We're seeing much larger group sizes as well as much more socializing, mating behavior, which we hadn't really been seeing for the last 5 years or so," said Dr. Lindsay Porter, a Hong Kong-based marine scientist.

According to Porter's research team, the number of pink dolphins has increased by roughly a third in those waters since March.

"These areas seem to be important for feeding and socializing. So it's great that there's this refuge for them," added Brennan, a member of Porter's team.

MEGACITIES AND SHIPPING

The Pearl River Delta is one of the most industrialized coastal areas on Earth. As well as Hong Kong and Macao, it includes Chinese mainland megacities like Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Dongguan, and is home to some 22 million people.

And aside from heavy shipping traffic, the dolphins' key habitat has been subjected to a host of large-scale developments, including the construction of Hong Kong's airport on reclaimed land and the world's longest sea bridge connecting the financial hub to Macau and Zhuhai.

A huge new reclamation project is also underway to build a third runway for the city's airport.

According to the WWF, there are only an estimated 2,000 pink dolphins left in the Pearl River Delta -- the minimum number that conservationists believe are needed to sustain the species. 

There is a palpable fear the delta's dolphins could go extinct under the population's current trajectory.

"Dolphins, and especially these estuarine dolphins, have a slow birth rate, a slow growth rate, a slow reproductive rate," said Laurence McCook, head of oceans conservation at WWF-Hong Kong. 

"So they need very careful management."

CANTONESE HERITAGE

The lack of ferries is a welcome, but potentially brief respite for the dolphins.

Noise from vessels disturbs mammals that rely on underwater sound for navigation and communication. 

The ships also pose the physical threat of striking the creatures, injuring and even killing them. 

The rugged southern coastline of Hong Kong's outlying Lantau island provides shelter from typhoons and predators for the dolphins.

But it is also where the ferries between Macau and the financial hub travel. 

Conservationists are campaigning to expand an existing marine park to better protect the vulnerable species.

"We've now identified a habitat that could then be reclaimed by them and could really be used to support their population," said Brennan, who believes recent findings could provide an opportunity for conservationists to "turn the tide" for the vulnerable dolphin population. 

"The fact that we've seen such a dramatic change, though still early days, from just one of those impacts going away is a really positive shift." 

But WWF's McCook warns time is running out for the dolphins.

"They're an icon of the area," he said. "They're a part of Cantonese heritage. They've been around here for millennia."

"It would be a global tragedy to lose this iconic creature from the future of the Greater Bay Area."

Agence France-Presse

'Be one with the fish' aquarium yoga among Hong Kong Ocean Park's new offerings

HONG KONG — Against the vivid backdrop of a giant aquarium filled with sharks, manta rays and other aquatic life, a yoga group on Thursday performed side planks, chair poses and lunges, their arms outstretched to the ceiling.

Hong Kong's cash-strapped Ocean Park has begun offering fitness activities such as yoga, meditation and dance classes to keep its flagging business afloat and offset deep losses due to coronavirus restrictions that have battered tourism in the Asian financial hub.

Yoga instructor Jessica Lee said the fish in the aquarium were a calming presence during her class. "It's really nice to be almost at one with them," she said. "I feel as if I am in the water, moving as fluidly as they are."

The 43-year-old theme park and Walt Disney Co.'s Hong Kong Disneyland have been shuttered for most of the year, only reopening in September. Both parks are mandated to operate at a maximum of half-capacity and face masks remain compulsory.

At over HK$6 billion in debt according to its latest annual report, Ocean Park secured a HK$4.5 billion ($580 million) government bailout in May which it said would help it stay operational for another year.

Anti-government protests last year and the rise of competing amusement parks in the region such as Chimelong Ocean Kingdom on China's Hengqin island, have exacerbated pressure on both Ocean Park and Hong Kong Disneyland.

Ocean Park also said it would for the first time open hiking trails underneath its cable car ride which overlooks the South China Sea. Air-conditioned tents will be available for those who want to camp and barbecue, it said.

However, 26-year-old resident Sze who was visiting Ocean Park on Thursday, said paying an additional cost for yoga and hiking seemed unnecessary when she was only interested in the rides.

"We need to pay extra money to join the hiking activities while hiking is supposed to be free," said Sze, who did not want to give her full name. "Doing yoga is also free if you go into the wild."

-reuters-

HSBC profits hammered by pandemic, soaring US-China tensions

HONG KONG - HSBC on Monday said profits for the first half of 2020 plunged by 69 percent on year as the banking giant was hammered by the coronavirus pandemic and spiralling China-US tensions.

The lender reported post-tax profits of $3.1 billion while pre-tax profit was $4.3 billion, a 64 percent drop on the same period last year. Reported revenue was down nine percent at $26.7 billion.

Chief executive Noel Quinn described the first six months of the year as "some of the most challenging in living memory".

"Our first-half performance was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, falling interest rates, increased geopolitical risk and heightened levels of market volatility," he said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange, 

Even by the standards of the current economic maelstrom engulfing global banks, HSBC has had a torrid year. 

Before the coronavirus crisis it was beset by disappointing profit growth, ground down by US-China trade war uncertainties and Britain's departure from the European Union.

The Asia-focused lender embarked on a huge cost-cutting initiative at the start of the year, including plans to slash some 35,000 jobs as well as trimming fat from less profitable divisions, primarily in the United States and Europe.

The coronavirus upended some of that cost-cutting drive with banks hammered by market volatility and the economic slowdown caused by the pandemic.

But HSBC has a further headache -- geopolitical tensions via its status as a major business conduit between China and the West.

HSBC makes 90 percent of its profit in Asia, with China and Hong Kong being the major drivers of growth.

Caught in crossfire

As a result it has found itself more vulnerable than most to the crossfire caused by the increasingly bellicose relationship between Beijing and Washington.

The bank has tried to stay in Beijing's good graces. 

It vocally backed a draconian national security law that Beijing imposed on Hong Kong in June to end a year of unrest and pro-democracy protests.

The move sparked criticism in Washington and London but analysts saw it as an attempt to protect its access to China, which has a track record of punishing businesses that do not toe Beijing's line.

But that has not shielded it from Beijing's wrath. 

Last month the bank was a subject of multiple reports in China's state-run media claiming that it had helped to provide the evidence that led to the arrest in Canada of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou on a US arrest warrant.

HSBC released a statement on its Chinese Weibo accounts saying it had not "framed" telecom giant Huawei or "fabricated evidence" that led to the arrest of Meng.

China's internet censors blocked access to HSBC's statement within hours of publication, without offering an explanation.

Quinn referenced the bank's growing political vulnerability in Monday's statement.

"Current tensions between China and the US inevitably create challenging situations for an organization with HSBC's footprint," he said.

"However, the need for a bank capable of bridging the economies of East and West is acute, and we are well placed to fulfil this role," he added.

The bank's Asia operations continued to show "good resilience", Quinn said, with profit before tax of $7.4 billion.

Earlier this year Quinn put some of the job cuts on hold as the pandemic struck.

But in Monday's statement he vowed to press ahead with the cost-cutting.

"As we seek to accelerate our transformation in the second half of the year, I am mindful of the impact it will have for some of our people, particularly those leaving us," he said. 

Agence France-Presse

Hong Kong's Disneyland to reopen on June 18 after coronavirus break

HONG KONG — Hong Kong's Disneyland theme park said on Monday it would reopen on June 18 to a reduced number of visitors and with enhanced health measures after the coronavirus outbreak forced it to close in late January.

The Chinese-ruled city has reported only a handful of new cases recently, with its total so far standing at 1,110 infections and 4 deaths.

The majority of the park's shopping and dining locations will restart operations with "controlled capacity," while social distancing measures will be implemented in queues, restaurants and other facilities. Hotel services will also resume gradually.

Disinfection will be carried out more frequently and hand sanitizers will be made available for visitors, who will be required to go through temperature screening, wear a face mask and sign a health declaration.

Hong Kong's Disneyland resort is owned by a joint venture, Hongkong International Theme Parks Ltd, of which the local government owns 53 percent and Walt Disney Co holds the rest.

Ocean Park, the city's other theme park, reopened on Saturday after lawmakers approved a HK$5.4 billion bailout plan last month to keep it running for another year.

Shanghai's Disneyland re-opened in May.

While many restrictions related to the coronavirus have been gradually lifted, Hong Kong's borders remain almost fully closed and group gatherings are limited to 8 people. 

-reuters-

Dozens in Hong Kong stage pro-democracy protest in shopping mall

HONG KONG - Dozens of Hong Kong protesters marched through a shopping mall on Friday, chanting pro-democracy slogans a day after thousands defied a police ban to hold a vigil for the anniversary of China's Tiananmen crackdown in 1989.

Protesters of all ages joined the march in the heart of the city's financial district, which ended peacefully after an hour.

Some held banners that read "Hong Kong independence" and "Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times," as well as the former British colonial flag, while others chanted "Glory to Hong Kong," the unofficial anthem of the protests.

Thursday's anniversary of Chinese troops opening fire on student-led protests in and around Beijing's Tiananmen Square was particularly sensitive this year as the central government drafts national security laws for the Asian financial hub.

It was the first time in 31 years that scuffles briefly disrupted what is usually a solemn day in Chinese-ruled Hong Kong, which traditionally organizes the world's biggest memorial for the crackdown.

Officers would not have intervened if protesters had not blocked roads in the working class district of Mong Kok, police said on Twitter on Thursday. They had rejected the application for the vigil over concerns about the coronavirus. 

-reuters-

Hong Kong commemorates 31st anniversary of Tiananmen Square protests

Protesters take part in a candlelight vigil at Victoria Park in Hong Kong on Thursday to mark the 31st anniversary of the crackdown of pro-democracy protests at Beijing's Tiananmen Square in 1989, after police rejected a mass annual vigil on public health grounds. The vigil comes amid increasing tensions after Beijing gave the green light last week to move ahead with a controversial national security law that would broaden its power over the financial hub. 

-reuters-

UK's Johnson offers visas for millions in Hong Kong

LONDON - British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Tuesday he would offer millions of Hong Kongers visas and a possible route to UK citizenship if China persists with its national security law.

"Many people in Hong Kong fear their way of life -- which China pledged to uphold -- is under threat," he wrote in an article for The Times newspaper and the South China Morning Post.

"If China proceeds to justify their fears, then Britain could not in good conscience shrug our shoulders and walk away; instead we will honour our obligations and provide an alternative."

About 350,000 people in Hong Kong currently hold British National (Overseas) passports, which allow visa-free access to Britain for up to six months, Johnson wrote.

Another 2.5 million people would be eligible to apply for one.

"If China imposes its national security law, the British government will change our immigration rules and allow any holder of these passports from Hong Kong to come to the UK for a renewable period of 12 months and be given further immigration rights, including the right to work, which could place them on a route to citizenship," he wrote.

The new law was brought in after a wave of pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, and approved by Beijing's rubber-stamp parliament as necessary to tackling "terrorism" and "separatism".

Opponents fear it will lead to political oppression in the financial hub, eroding freedoms and autonomy supposedly guaranteed in the 1997 handover from Britain to China.

Johnson said the Hong Kong law would "curtail its freedoms and dramatically erode its autonomy".

If implemented, "Britain would then have no choice but to uphold our profound ties of history and friendship with the people of Hong Kong", he wrote.

London has already announced plans to extend visa rights to those eligible for BN(O) passports and joined international condemnation of Beijing.

But Johnson's personal intervention significantly ups the pressure.

"I hope it will not come to this," he wrote, insisting that "Britain does not seek to prevent China's rise".

"It is precisely because we welcome China as a leading member of the world community that we expect it to abide by international agreements," he wrote.

He rejected as "false" claims that London organised the protests, adding: "Britain wants nothing more than for Hong Kong to succeed under 'one country, two systems'.

"I hope that China wants the same. Let us work together to make it so."

Agence France-Presse

From settlement to counselling, Taiwan promises help for fleeing Hong Kongers

TAIPEI — Taiwan on Thursday promised to settle Hong Kongers who flee the Chinese-ruled city due to political reasons, offering help from employment to counselling as China pushes new security legislation that has triggered fresh protests.

Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen this week became the first world leader to pledge specific measures to help people from Hong Kong who may leave the former British colony due to the new legislation, a move that is certain to sour already poor ties between Taipei and Beijing.

Chen Ming-tong, head of Taiwan's top China-policy maker, the Mainland Affairs Council, told parliament the government will establish an organization to deliver "humanitarian relief" that includes settlement and employment in a joint effort with activists groups.

He said counselling services will also be available for Hong Kongers, some of whom may take part in increasingly violent pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong.

"Many Hong Kongers want to come to Taiwan. Our goal is to give them settlement and care," Chen said, urging the public not use the word "refugee" as it could be "emotionally harmful" for people from the city.

Chen, however, did not give details such as scale, timing and qualification of the relief program when pressed by lawmakers, saying the government is still working on the details.

Hong Kong's demonstrators have won widespread sympathy in democratic Taiwan, which China considers as its territory to be taken by force, if necessary. Taiwan has shown no interest in being ruled by autocratic China. 


Help for Hong Kong has won rare bipartisan support in politically polarized Taiwan and 3 opposition parties have introduced bills to make it easier for Hong Kongers to live in Taiwan if they have to leave the city due to political reasons. 

Taiwan has no law on refugees that could be applied to protesters seeking asylum, but its laws promise to help Hong Kongers whose safety and liberty are threatened for political reasons.

Some say Tsai's government is not moving fast enough.

"Please come up with details of the humanitarian relief at the soonest. Don't wait until people shed blood like water," said Chen Yu-jen, a lawmaker from main opposition Kuomintang party. 

Ivan Tang, a Hong Kong pro-democracy activist, welcomed Tsai's support but cautioned a sense of urgency among protesters in the city, some of whom had been barred from entering Taiwan due to travel restrictions amid the coronavirus pandemic.

"They have nowhere to go... but the security law could be implemented soon," he said.

Taiwan has become a popular destination for Hong Kongers leaving the city, with the number of Hong Kong citizens granted Taiwan residency jumping 150 percent to 2,383 in the first 4 months of 2020 compared with a year ago, official data shows.

University applications to Taiwan from Hong Kong also rose 62 percent in 2020 from a year ago, and island's education ministry said this week it was planning to raise the quota for Hong Kong students. 

-reuters-

China tech giant Tencent's net profit jumps during pandemic

HONG KONG - Chinese internet giant Tencent reported Wednesday a sharp rise in first-quarter net profit after a surge in demand for its online games as the coronavirus pandemic forces people to stay home.

The Shenzhen-based company, one of the largest listed on the Hong Kong stock exchange, said net profit rose 29 percent from a year earlier to 28 billion yuan ($3.95 billion).

"During this difficult period, we seek to provide online services that keep people connected, informed, productive, and entertained," chief executive Ma Huateng said in a statement. 

"So far, our businesses have proved resilient and cashflow-generative."

While many companies are being hammered by the economic fallout of the pandemic, tech firms have seen strong demand for their products.

Tencent is one of the world's largest gaming companies and the industry has benefited enormously from the billions of people around the world forced into lockdowns or restricted by social distancing rules. 

Online game revenue grew by 31 percent on year to 37.2 billion yuan, Tencent said.

The company owns hugely popular titles such as "Honour of Kings", "PUBG Mobile" and "Clash of Clans".

"Peacekeeper Elite", a less violent version of "PUBG Mobile" that was released last year to comply with authoritarian China's censors, was also a major success.

Revenues from online advertising and tech products for the finance industry also held up despite the virus, increasing 32 percent and 22 percent respectively in the first quarter, though they continue to face stiff competition from Alibaba.

Tencent's shares closed down 0.32 percent on Wednesday before the results were released. 

But the company has gained more than $42 billion in market value since COVID-19 broke out, Bloomberg News reported, defying a global market rout and a record Chinese economic contraction.

Agence France-Presse

Hong Kong economy shrinks record 8.9 percent in first quarter

HONG KONG - Hong Kong suffered its worst quarterly contraction since modern records began, official figures showed Monday, as the coronavirus outbreak hammered an economy already mired in recession from political unrest and trade war woes.

The financial hub is now experiencing its third-straight quarter of negative growth -- its longest financial downturn since the aftermath of the 2008 global financial crash. 

Months of debilitating street protests and the tit-for-tat tariff battle between Washington and Beijing had weighed on the local economy for months before the pandemic helped push the city deeper into recession.

Advance figures released Monday showed an 8.9 percent on-year contraction in the first quarter -- the worst decline since the government began compiling data in 1974.

The result was a bigger fall than the 8.3 percent recorded during the Asian financial crisis in 1998 and the 7.8 percent seen in early 2009.

"Faced with a collapse in global demand, Hong Kong's small, open economy is taking a severe hit," Bloomberg Intelligence economist Qian Wan said in a note to clients ahead of the results.

The figures were worse than most projections, even though the city has made impressive headway against the coronavirus outbreak. 

Despite its proximity and links with the Chinese mainland, confirmed infections have been kept to around 1,000 with just six deaths. 

The financial hub has managed to largely end local transmissions of the disease, with almost all new cases coming from people returning to the city from overseas who are quickly quarantined. 

Officials are beginning to ease some social distancing measures, in a move that will boost the local economy. 

But in an international finance hub so dependent on the rest of the world, plenty of headwinds remain as the coronavirus continues to wreak economic chaos elsewhere.

"Even if there is improvement, it will be gradual and small," said financial secretary Paul Chan, who estimates the economy will contract between four to seven percent this year.

There is also little sign of an end to the political uncertainty hanging over Hong Kong in the aftermath of last year's civil unrest. 

Despite vowing to heal divides at the start of the year, the city's government has not unveiled any policies aimed at reconciliation, while Beijing has ramped up its rhetoric against the local pro-democracy movement.

There has also been little mood for compromise among protesters who largely organise online and the few figures from the movement with a public profile are now being prosecuted.

As a result, political tensions are rising just as the city moves towards ending some anti-virus movement restrictions.

In the last fortnight small protests have begun bubbling up again after four months of comparative clam imposed by the pandemic.

More global economic damage from the virus and a resurgence of local unrest would both result in "major downside risks" to Hong Kong's economy, said Oxford Economics senior economist Tommy Wu. 

Agence France-Presse

Hong Kong reports zero new coronavirus cases for 1st time since early March

HONG KONG - Hong Kong recorded zero new coronavirus cases on Monday for the first time since early March, health authorities said, though they urged residents to maintain strict hygiene and social distancing practices and avoid unnecessary travel.

The Chinese-ruled city, which has avoided the exponential increases seen in other parts of the world, has confirmed 1,025 total cases and four deaths since the outbreak began in January. The previous day with no recorded cases was March 5.

While schools remain closed, many people are working from home and shopping malls and restaurants are less busy, Hong Kong has stopped short of a full lockdown like those imposed in other cities such as London and New York.

Almost all Hong Kongers wear masks, office buildings, commercial centers and public institutions run temperature checks, and free sanitizer dispensers are widely available.

Hong Kong banned public gatherings of more than four people for 14 days from March 29 and later extended that restriction until April 23.
Game centers, gyms, cinemas and other places of amusement and public entertainment are also closed and foreign arrivals at the airport are suspended indefinitely. 

(Reporting by Marius Zaharia; Editing by Catherine Evans)

-reuters-

Hong Kong orders bars to close as it ramps up social distancing

HONG KONG- Hong Kong has ordered pubs and bars to close for 2 weeks from 6 p.m. on Friday as the financial hub steps up social distancing restrictions and joins cities around the world in the battle to halt the spread of coronavirus.

Anyone who violates the new law faces 6 months in jail and a fine of HK$50,000 ($6,450).

The extraordinary move in a city that never sleeps comes a week after the government stopped all tourist arrivals and transit passengers at its airport and said it was considering suspending the sale of alcohol in some venues.

"Any premises (commonly known as bar or pub) that are exclusively or mainly used for the sale or supply of intoxicating liquors ... must be closed," the government said in a statement late on Thursday.

It added that 62 confirmed coronavirus cases in the city had been linked to bars, leading to 14 further infections, including a 40-day-old baby. Hong Kong has 802 cases of coronavirus and four deaths from the disease.

Alcohol will still be available in supermarkets and convenience stores across the Asian financial center.

Global coronavirus cases surpassed 1 million on Thursday with more than 52,000 deaths as the pandemic further exploded in the United States and the death toll climbed in Spain and Italy, according to a Reuters tally of official data.

-Reuters-

6 more Filipino musicians in HK infected with COVID-19: officials

HONG KONG - Six more Filipino musicians and a newly-arrived domestic worker have tested positive for COVID-19, Hong Kong health authorities said Tuesday.

All were bandmates and a Filipino patient who was confirmed to be positive on COVID-19 on Monday. 


All but one of the musicians, aged between 26 and 48, had no underlying illness, and no travel history during the incubation and infectious period. 

Hong Kong Health authorities said the band had spent the night in Lan Kwai Fong and went to other places like Insomnia in Central, Centrestage, and Dusk Til Dawn, both in Wanchai.

Authorities, however, said this does not mean the places were where they got the infection from. Health authorities are appealing to those who have come into contact with the recent cases to see a doctor immediately.

The six musicians and a newly-arrived Filipino domestic worker made up the largest recorded number of confirmed cases from the city's Filipino community in a day.

The Philippine Consulate reported that 7 Filipinos tested positive for COVID-19 as of Tuesday. The official tally could rise once the newly reported local cases have been confirmed.

Officials have since classified playing music together at this time was a high-risk activity.

The news was a big blow to the already struggling musician community of Hong Kong due to the months-long anti-government demonstrations over a now-junked extradition bill. 

The Hong Kong Musicians' Union, which currently has 104 active members, majority of Filipinos, said it was "alarming" that more than 60 percent of the musicians in the union have lost their jobs as virus fears spread, forcing many establishments to close either temporarily or for good. Even musicians playing at hotels were not spared.

The seven musicians who recently contracted the diseases are not members of the union.

The government earlier rolled out a HK$30 billion anti-epidemic fund to render support to affected industries and sectors, including a HK$10,000 cash handout to all adult permanent residents in Hong Kong. Details on distribution have yet to be finalized.

"I'm eager to know how to help them. I understand all businesses are closing with what the Hong Kong Government is planning to do. It will totally financially hurt the musicians. What help can they get from the government? These are all people paying taxes," said HKMU chairperson Manuela Dacanay Lo.

Lo said some senior members of the union are part-time musicians and many of them teach at music schools. Applying for social welfare is an option but not all of them may be eligible, Lo said.

"And if they apply now, nako eh baka next year pa yun. They need help now," said Lo.

(They might get it next year. But they need help now.)

As of Tuesday afternoon, Hong Kong has reported 387 cases of COVID-19, including 4 deaths. Some 448 patients are under isolation, while 102 already recovered. 

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Asia-Pacific economies face $211 billion hit from virus, says S&P

HONG KONG - The coronavirus could wipe more than $200 billion off Asia Pacific economies this year, S&P Global ratings warned Friday, sending growth to its lowest level in more than a decade, as governments struggle to combat the disease.

In a worst-case scenario, China could see growth of less than three percent, while Japan, Australia and Hong Kong could "flirt with recession", it said in a report.

Fears about the impact of the outbreak, which has spread to at least 85 countries since it began in China in late December, have hammered world markets as investors fret over its economic impact.

S&P said it expected the region to grow 4.0 percent this year as supply and demand shocks blow a $211 billion hole in the economy. That compares with a 4.8 percent estimate given in December and would be the worst performance since a contraction in 2008 caused by the global financial crisis.

"Asia-Pacific's outlook has darkened due to the global spread of the coronavirus," it said. "This will exert domestic supply-and-demand shocks in Japan and Korea. It will mean weaker external demand from the US and Europe"

The report said economies were suffering from the double-whammy of weak demand as consumers stay home for fear of catching the disease, and falling supplies as industries are rocked by shutdowns.

It saw China's economy -- which was already stuttering before the crisis struck -- expanding 4.8 percent this year, which would be the worst in three decades.

However, it added that in the worst case, which "assumes localized reinfections as people return to work and the re-imposition of some restrictions on activity" growth could crash to just 2.9 percent.

Hong Kong, which suffered its first recession last year since 2008, was tipped to shrink further.

The city, along with Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam would be the hardest hit, with tourism -- which has been battered globally -- accounting for around 10 percent of growth on average.

Still, S&P did say that economies would likely see healthy rebounds.

"A U-shaped recovery is likely to be delayed until the third quarter if signs emerge by the second quarter that the virus is globally contained," the report said.

"We assume that the coronavirus will not permanently impair the labor force, the capital stock, or productivity -- hence, the region's economies should be employing as many people and producing as much output by the end of 2021 as it would have done in the absence of the virus."


Also on Friday, the Asian Development Bank said it saw China taking a $103 billion hit, or 0.8 percentage point hit to GDP, while losses could hit $22 billion -- or 0.2 percentage points -- for other developing economies in the region.

"The magnitude of the economic losses will depend on how the outbreak evolves, which remains highly uncertain," the bank said in a statement.

Agence France-Presse

Tycoon behind Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles toys dies, aged 87

Hong Kong tycoon Chan Tai-ho " the founder of Playmates toymaker which gave the world the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle action figures " died on Thursday aged 87.

His wife called police after a domestic helper found Chan unconscious in bed at his luxury flat at Altadena House, Barker Road on The Peak shortly before 12.30pm.

He was taken to Ruttonjee Hospital in Wan Chai, where he was declared dead at 1.20pm, police said.

A force spokesman said initial investigation found nothing suspicious about the death and an autopsy would be carried out to ascertain its cause. It was understood Chan had an illness.

Chan, born in 1932, established Playmates in the city in 1966, running a factory in Tuen Mun.

The company set up a network of distributors in the United States in 1978 to sell a range of dolls and preschool toys marketed under the Playmates brand name.

In 1984, Playmates Holdings became the first toy company to list on the Hong Kong stock market.

The company's greatest successes came in the 1980s with its Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles figures, as well as Baby Crawl-Away and Cricket dolls. It also produced figurines from The Simpsons and Star Trek television shows.

The action figures from the comic book and television show, which chartered the adventures of four anthropomorphic turtles named after Italian Renaissance artists, was launched in 1988 and went on to become one of the most successful brands in the history of the toy industry, according to the company's website.

Playmates was also involved in property and investment from the 1970s, when it developed and managed an industrial premises for its own use, then covering more than 300,000 sq ft in floor space, before moving deeper into the sector and other business activities.

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