Month: February 2026

Hong Kong Customs dismantles two illegal fueling stations      ​
     Members of the public may report any suspected illegal fuel activities to Customs’ 24-hour hotline 182 8080 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hkIssued at HKT 18:05

Hong Kong’s first petrol-cum-charging station converted from petrol filling station opens       
     The PCS is located at 5 Fung Shing Street, Diamond Hill, and operates 24 hours a day. In addition to the existing auto-fuel and auto-liquefied petroleum gas filling services, it has added two new fast chargers of 120 kW output power for the use of EVs. To facilitate the charging of commercial vehicles, the two fast chargers are reserved for use by electric taxis (e-taxis) and electric public light buses (e-PLBs) from 3pm to 6pm daily, i.e. general shift-change period for taxis.
      
     Officiating at the PCS launch ceremony, the Under Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Miss Diane Wong, said that the transformation from conventional fuel-propelled vehicles to EVs has become a trend. To make the effective use of existing PFS sites to provide charging services for EVs, the Government is gradually converting some existing PFSs into charging stations or PCSs to support more diversified charging facilities and to meet the fast-charging needs of different types of EVs.
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     To promote the green transformation of vehicles and to achieve zero vehicular emissions before 2050, the Government has announced ceasing new registrations of fuel-propelled private cars (including hybrid vehicles) in 2035 or earlier. To cope with charging demands from the continuous growth of EVs, the Government is taking a multipronged approach to enhancing the charging network, aiming to provide approximately 10 000 fast chargers by 2035. The Government will continue to make good use of the existing PFS sites in Hong Kong, and work with PFS operators, power companies and relevant stakeholders to facilitate and promote retrofitting charging facilities at existing PFSs.
      
     In order to encourage owners of taxis and public light buses to expedite the adoption of e-taxis and e-PLBs, and by reference to the current arrangement of dedicated liquefied petroleum gas filling stations, a charging ceiling price mechanism will be established for e-taxis and e-PLBs at designated PCSs. The operators cannot charge a price that is higher than the ceiling price to be announced by the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) on a monthly basis. The charging price for other EVs will be determined by the market. For details about the calculation of charging ceiling prices for e-taxis and e-PLBs, please refer to the Environment and Ecology Bureau website (www.eeb.gov.hk/en/resources_publications/guidelines/index.html          
     Details of the charging ceiling price have been posted at PCSs and will be announced regularly on the EPD website (www.epd.gov.hkIssued at HKT 16:44

Tender awarded for site in Ngau Tau Kok(1) Century Ace Development Limited (Henderson Land Development Company Limited);
(2) Excellent Champ Limited (Sino Land Company Limited and Great Eagle Holdings Limited);
(3) Keen Point Limited;
(4) Mid-Levels Portfolio (Tregunter Towers 1 & 2) Limited (Kerry Properties Limited);
(5) Newton Investments Limited (CK Asset Holdings Limited);
(6) Pacific Great International Limited (Sun Hung Kai Properties Limited);
(7) Strong Associate Limited (K. Wah International Holdings Limited); and
(8) Zarow Limited (Wheelock Properties Limited).Issued at HKT 17:45

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Special traffic arrangements for Victoria Park Lunar New Year Fair 
A. Road closure
 
     Depending on traffic and crowd conditions, the following roads may be closed daily from 8am to 0.01am of the following day from February 11 to 12, and daily from 8am to 3am of the following day from February 13 to 15:

– The unnamed road section at the northern entrance of the Park Towers car park, except for car park access;
– Hing Fat Street between Causeway Road and Lau Li Street, except for franchised buses and green minibuses;
– Lau Li Street between Hing Fat Street and Ngan Mok Street; and
– Part of the traffic lanes of Electric Road between Gordon Road and Yacht Street.- Great George Street;
– Sugar Street;
– Cleveland Street;
– Kingston Street;
– Northbound Gloucester Road between Causeway Road and Great George Street;
– Northbound Gloucester Road between Great George Street and the Moreton Terrace flyover;
– Southbound Gloucester Road between Causeway Road and the Causeway Bay  flyover;
– Northbound Gloucester Road between Great George Street and westbound Gloucester Road (only from February 13 to 15);
– Lockhart Road between Percival Street and Cannon Street (only from February 13 to 15);
– Jaffe Road between Percival Street and Cannon Street (only from February 13 to 15);
– Cannon Street (only from February 13 to 15); and
– Southbound Gloucester Road (only from February 13 to 15). 
     The following roads will be pedestrianised daily from 4pm to 0.01am of the following day from February 11 to 12, and daily from noon to 3am of the following day from February 13 to 15:
 
– Lockhart Road between Cannon Street and East Point Road;
– East Point Road; and
– Great George Street between East Point Road and Paterson Street.       
     The metered parking spaces on Lau Li Street between Hing Fat Street and Ngan Mok Street will be suspended daily from 8am to 0.01am of the following day from February 11 to 12, and daily from 8am to 3am of the following day from February 13 to 15.- 85 metered parking spaces (Nos. 1604AB to 1657AB) will be suspended from 8am to 1am of the following day daily from February 13 to 15.Issued at HKT 16:41

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Results of monthly survey on business situation of small and medium-sized enterprises for January 2026 
     The current diffusion index (DI) on business receipts amongst SMEs decreased from 44.9 in December 2025 in the contractionary zone to 43.4 in January 2026, whereas the one-month’s ahead (i.e. February 2026) outlook DI on business receipts was 46.4. Analysed by sector, the current DIs on business receipts for a number of surveyed sectors dropped in January 2026 as compared with previous month, particularly for the retail trade (from 42.1 to 38.4) and wholesale trade (from 44.3 to 40.7).
          
     The current DI on new orders for the import and export trades decreased from 47.7 in December 2025 to 46.0 in January 2026, whereas the outlook DI on new orders in one month’s time (i.e. February 2026) was 47.1.
 
Commentary
 
     A Government spokesman said that the current and outlook diffusion indices on business receipts for SMEs in January eased somewhat, following general improvements in the past months. The current diffusion index on employment for SMEs in the same month also recorded a slight moderation from the preceding month.
 
     Looking ahead, sustained economic expansion in Hong Kong should help bolster local business sentiment. However, the international environment remains complicated, and the Government will continue to closely monitor the evolving developments.
 
Further information
 
     The Monthly Survey on Business Situation of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises aims to provide a quick reference, with minimum time lag, for assessing the short-term business situation faced by SMEs. SMEs covered in this survey refer to companies with fewer than 50 persons engaged. Respondents were asked to exclude seasonal fluctuations in reporting their views. Based on the views collected from the survey, a set of diffusion indices (including current and outlook diffusion indices) is compiled. A reading above 50 indicates that the business condition is generally favourable, whereas that below 50 indicates otherwise. As for statistics on the business prospects of prominent companies in Hong Kong, users may refer to the publication entitled “Report on Quarterly Business Tendency Survey” released by the C&SD.
 
     The results of the survey should be interpreted with care. The survey solicits feedback from a panel sample of about 600 SMEs each month and the survey findings are thus subject to sample size constraint. Views collected from the survey refer only to those of respondents on their own companies rather than those on the respective sectors they are engaged in. Besides, in this type of opinion survey on expected business situation, the views collected in the survey are affected by the events in the community occurring around the time of enumeration, and it is difficult to establish precisely the extent to which respondents’ perception of the business situation accords with the underlying trends. For this survey, main bulk of the data were collected around the last week of the reference month.
 
     More detailed statistics are given in the “Report on Monthly Survey on the Business Situation of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises”. Users can browse and download the publication at the website of the C&SD (www.censtatd.gov.hk/en/EIndexbySubject.html?pcode=B1080015&scode=300 
     Users who have enquiries about the survey results may contact Industrial Production Statistics Section of the C&SD (Tel: 3903 7246; email: sme-survey@censtatd.gov.hkIssued at HKT 16:30

Minimum Wage Commission delighted by acceptance of recommended new Statutory Minimum Wage rate 
     After conducting the review under the new annual review mechanism of the Statutory Minimum Wage (SMW), the Minimum Wage Commission (MWC) has recommended raising the SMW rate from the current $42.1 per hour to $43.1.
      
     The Chairperson of the MWC, Ms Priscilla Wong, said today (February 10), “We are delighted to learn that the Chief Executive (CE) in Council has accepted the MWC’s recommended new SMW rate after considering the report of the MWC.”
      
     Ms Wong added, “The MWC adopted the formula approved by the CE in Council to derive the recommended SMW rate (please refer to the Annex). During the review process, the MWC discussed in detail the implementation arrangements for adopting the formula, examined the data of each indicator in the formula and assessed the relevant impacts. The MWC believes that the new SMW rate can maintain an appropriate balance between forestalling excessively low wages and minimising the loss of low-paid jobs, while giving due regard to sustaining Hong Kong’s economic growth and competitiveness, which is in line with the policy objectives of the SMW. We earnestly hope that the new SMW rate will be accepted by the Legislative Council.”
      
     The 2026 Report on Reviewing the Statutory Minimum Wage Rate has been uploaded to the MWC’s website (www.mwc.org.hkIssued at HKT 15:13

Chief Executive in Council adopts recommendation on Statutory Minimum Wage rate      
     The Government will publish the Minimum Wage Ordinance (Amendment of Schedule 3) Notice 2026 in the Gazette next Friday (February 20) and table it in the Legislative Council (LegCo) on February 25. Subject to the approval of the LegCo, the revised SMW rate will come into force on May 1 this year.
      
     When conducting the review under the new annual review mechanism of the SMW, the MWC adopted the formula approved by the CE in Council to recommend the new SMW rate (please refer to the Annex).
      
     The Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun, said that the MWC had thoroughly drawn up the implementation arrangements for adopting the formula, examined the data of each indicator in the formula, and assessed the relevant impacts. The indicators adopted in the formula are objective and easily comprehensible, which enhance the transparency and predictability of the SMW adjustment, minimise controversy and are conducive to fostering harmonious labour relations. An annual review also allows closer alignment of the SMW with socioeconomic changes. He is very pleased with the MWC’s smooth completion of the review under the new mechanism, and paid warm tribute to the Chairperson of the MWC, Ms Priscilla Wong, for leading all MWC members in making valuable contributions.
      
     Mr Sun said, “After careful consideration, the Government is of the view that the MWC has ably discharged its statutory function of reviewing the SMW rate. The recommendation of the MWC is in line with the policy objectives of the SMW to maintain an appropriate balance between forestalling excessively low wages and minimising the loss of low-paid jobs, while giving due regard to sustaining Hong Kong’s economic growth and competitiveness.”
      
     The 2026 Report on Reviewing the Statutory Minimum Wage Rate has been uploaded to the MWC’s website (www.mwc.org.hk      
     The Government will publish the Employment Ordinance (Amendment of Ninth Schedule) Notice 2026 in the Gazette on February 20 and table it in the LegCo on February 25. The Notice concurrently amends the monthly monetary cap on the requirement for employers to record the total number of hours worked by employees in a wage period. An employer will be exempted from the requirement to record the total number of hours worked by an employee in a wage period if the wages payable to the employee for that wage period are not less than $17,600 (currently $17,200) per month. The revised monthly monetary cap will come into force on the same day as the revised SMW rate takes effect, which is May 1 this year.
Issued at HKT 15:08

Auction of personalised vehicle registration marks to be held on February 28(ii) the identity document of the purchaser (if the purchaser and the successful bidder are different persons);
(iii) a copy of the Certificate of Incorporation (if the purchaser is a body corporate); and
(iv) a crossed cheque made payable to “The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region” or “The Government of the HKSAR”. For an auctioned mark paid for by cheque, the first three working days after the date of auction will be required for cheque clearance confirmation before processing of the application for mark assignment can be completed. Successful bidders may also pay through the Easy Pay System (EPS), but are reminded to note the maximum transfer amount in the same day of the payment card. Payment by post-dated cheque, cash, credit card or other methods will not be accepted.Issued at HKT 14:45

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