The Housing Bureau today announced that applications for Phase 3 Light Public Housing (LPH) units will be open from January 30.
Phase 3 of the LPH programme covers four projects – one each in Chai Wan and Kai Tak, and two in Tuen Mun – that together will provide a total of about 8,820 units. Resident intakes are expected to begin gradually from the second quarter of this year.
On or before January 30, eligible applicants will receive application forms sent from the bureau by post in batches. Applications submitted between January 30 and February 20 will receive priority processing. Those who already applied do not need to submit another application.
The bureau has reported an overwhelming response to the LPH programme, with more than 27,700 applications submitted by mid-January.
The Phase 1 LPH project at Yau Pok Road, Yuen Long is expected to be the first to begin resident intakes in batches next month.
Last year, six projects were gradually completed, providing a total of about 9,500 units for tenants to move into.
Four of these projects – located in Yuen Long, Ngau Tau Kok, Sheung Shui and Kwun Tong – are now fully occupied, providing more than 4,600 units.
Three of the Phase 3 projects will offer units designed for one to two, three to four, or four to five people.
The project on Sheung On Street, Chai Wan will provide about 1,720 units with estimated monthly rents ranging from about $1,340 to $3,020.
The Olympic Avenue, Kai Tak (Phase 2) project will provide about 3,180 units in the first stage of applications, with estimated monthly rents ranging from about $1,310 to $2,990.
About 2,760 units will be offered in the project at Yan Po Road, Tuen Mun in the first stage of applications, where estimated monthly rents will range from about $900 to $2,010.
Finally, the project at Tsing Fat Street, Tuen Mun will provide about 1,160 units in the first stage of applications for one to two people, and three to four people. The estimated monthly rents will range from about $900 to $1,610.
Separately, the bureau noted that the scope of the Trial Scheme on Special Allowance for Households of Light Public Housing has been expanded to cover all 13 LPH projects. The scheme has been extended until March 31, 2028.
The special allowance amounts have been raised slightly to reflect an increase in living costs. The new amounts will take effect from March 1.
For enquiries, call 3464 0700 or send an email to lphapp@hb.gov.hk.
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
Firing practice for February 2026————————————-
DateFebruary 3 (Tuesday) February 4 (Wednesday) February 5 (Thursday) February 6 (Friday) February 7 (Saturday) February 9 (Monday) February 10 (Tuesday) February 11 (Wednesday) February 12 (Thursday) February 13 (Friday) February 14 (Saturday) February 23 (Monday) February 24 (Tuesday) February 25 (Wednesday) February 26 (Thursday) February 27 (Friday) February 28 (Saturday)8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pmTsing Shan Firing Range ——————————-
DateFebruary 3 (Tuesday) February 4 (Wednesday) February 5 (Thursday) February 6 (Friday) February 7 (Saturday) February 9 (Monday) February 10 (Tuesday) February 11 (Wednesday) February 12 (Thursday) February 13 (Friday) February 14 (Saturday) February 23 (Monday) February 24 (Tuesday) February 25 (Wednesday) February 26 (Thursday) February 27 (Friday) February 28 (Saturday)8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pm 8am-9pmIssued at HKT 11:00
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
Steering Committee on APEC Finance Ministers’ Meeting 2026 preparatory work convenes first meeting Mr Hui said, “The year 2026 marks the APEC ‘China Year’, with the theme of ‘Building an Asia-Pacific Community to Prosper Together’. Hong Kong’s inaugural hosting of the FMM signifies our country’s recognition of Hong Kong’s status as an international financial centre. Leveraging Hong Kong’s strengths in internationalisation and financial development, while being guided by the three priorities – openness, innovation, cooperation – of the ‘China Year’, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government will spare no effort in focusing on the new opportunities and challenges facing Asia-Pacific development, integrating the building of an Asia-Pacific community into concrete actions for regional co-operation.
“The Steering Committee comprises senior representatives from 20 policy bureaux, departments, and organisations. It will make every effort to co-ordinate interdepartmental collaboration in preparing for the FMM and provide advice on its preparatory work to assist our country in organising a well-executed and smoothly run FMM. I am confident that through collective wisdom and close collaboration, the members of the Steering Committee will offer invaluable insights and robust support for the preparatory work. This will ensure the successful organisation of the FMM while showcasing to the international community the unique appeal and boundless opportunities of Hong Kong as an international financial centre.”
In addition to reviewing preliminary preparatory work, members of the Steering Committee also discussed multiple follow-up tasks for the FMM during the meeting today, including the meeting venue, accommodation and security arrangements, and publicity.
China, as the host of APEC 2026, is responsible for preparing for and chairing the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting, as well as a series of ministerial and other meetings. The Central People’s Government announced earlier that the FMM will be hosted by the Ministry of Finance and will be held in Hong Kong under the arrangements and organisation of the HKSAR Government. Issued at HKT 19:08
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
LegCo Panels elect Chairmen and Deputy Chairmen The 18 Panels of the Legislative Council (LegCo) have elected their Chairmen and Deputy Chairmen for the 2026 session today (January 23). Details are available in the Attachment.
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
The Immigration Department (ImmD) mounted a series of territory-wide anti-illegal worker operations codenamed “Lightshadow”, joint operations with the Hong Kong Police Force codenamed “Champion” and “Windsand”, a joint operation with the Labour Department codenamed “Rainbow” and a joint operation with the Hong Kong Police Force and the Labour Department codenamed “Powerplayer” from January 16 to yesterday (January 22). A total of 13 suspected illegal workers, four suspected employers and two suspected aiders and abettors were arrested.
During the anti-illegal worker operations, ImmD officers raided multiple target locations including restaurants, flats under renovation and grocery stores etc. Thirteen suspected illegal workers were arrested. The arrested suspected illegal workers comprised two men and 11 women, aged 24 to 62. Among them, two women were holding recognisance forms which prohibit them from taking any employment. Two men and two women, aged 36 to 62, were suspected of employing the illegal workers and were also arrested. Furthermore, the two suspected aiders and abettors arrested were a man aged 35 and a woman aged 50. An investigation into the suspected employers is ongoing, and the possibility of further arrests is not ruled out.
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
Light Public Housing to open for Phase 3 application from January 30 Eligible applicants will receive the application forms by post on or before January 30, sent by the HB in batches. Application forms submitted between January 30 and February 20 will be handled with priority. Those who have submitted an application form before do not need to make another application.
A spokesman for the HB said, “The LPH application has received an overwhelming response, with over 27 700 applications received as of mid-January. Under the leadership of the HB, six projects providing a total of about 9 500 units were progressively completed for tenant intake last year. Among these, four projects (including Yau Pok Road, Yuen Long; Choi Hing Road, Ngau Tau Kok; Choi Yuen Road, Sheung Shui; and Shun On Road, Kwun Tong) with over 4 600 units have already completed full intake. This fully demonstrates that with affordable rent, comprehensive facilities and services, as well as a better living environment, LPH is highly popular among citizens in need.”
The spokesman added, “The Phase 3 LPH projects are located in various districts in Hong Kong, Kowloon, and the New Territories, with different scales and merits. We believe that they can cater for the needs of different applicants. More importantly, the living environment and ancillary facilities of all LPH projects are far better than any inadequate housing, such as substandard sub-divided units. There are also special allowances for residents and various services and supports provided by the operating organisations for the tenants. As regards the special allowance for residents, the Commission on Poverty earlier approved an additional allocation of $57.05 million from the Community Care Fund to expand the Trial Scheme on Special Allowance for Households of Light Public Housing (Trial Scheme) to comprehensively cover all 13 LPH projects, extending it until March 31, 2028, with a view to providing timely support to more residents in need (including LPH Phase 3 applicants) and assisting them in adapting to their new communities more quickly. We encourage eligible citizens in need to submit their applications as soon as possible.”
Same as the present, the expanded Trial Scheme will continue to provide a one-off special allowance to LPH residents to alleviate their pressure arising from expenditures during removal and adaptation to the new living environment and communities (such as children’s school transfer, purchasing furniture and electrical appliances and re-establishing community networks). There is no restriction on the use of the allowance so as to allow households to meet their own needs in a more flexible manner. In response to the increase in living costs, the amounts of special allowance under the Trial Scheme have been slightly raised. The new amounts will come into effect from March 1. The amounts of allowance depending on the number of family members living together in the household and the location of the LPH projects are listed in the table below:
(applicable to applications submitted on or after March 1) Details of the LPH Phase 3 application are as follows:
(1) Eligibility for priority application: General applicants who have been on the waiting list for traditional public rental housing (PRH) for three years or more are eligible, with priority given to family applicants. Those meeting the eligibility criteria will receive by post the application forms sent by the HB in batches.
(2) Application period: Applicants who submit duly completed application forms between January 30 and February 20 will be handled with priority, whilst the HB will continue to accept applications after February 20.
(3) Submission methods: Interested applicants may submit their duly completed application forms by post to P.O. Box of the Dedicated Team on Light Public Housing of the Housing Bureau (P.O. Box 28222, Gloucester Road Post Office, Wan Chai, Hong Kong); or by depositing them into drop-in boxes during office hours (from 9am to 6pm, Mondays to Fridays, except Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays) at the following locations: In addition, if the applicant and all family members have registered for “iAM Smart+”, they may opt to complete, sign and submit the e-Form by scanning the exclusive QR code pre-printed on the application form.
The HB will process the application forms received as soon as possible and make arrangements for the allocation. To give priority to those families in need to move into LPH, if the applicants are currently living in inadequate housing; having special medical conditions; or having minor children, newborn babies, elderly persons, etc, in the family, they will be given a higher priority for LPH allocation.
Information of the projects in the Phase 3 application is as follows:
(1) Sheung On Street, Chai Wan: Providing about 1 720 units (including units for one to two persons, three to four persons and four to five persons), with a number of franchised bus and minibus routes available in the vicinity to/from Chai Wan MTR Station, Heng Fa Chuen MTR Station, and various places in Hong Kong and Kowloon. The estimated monthly rent ranges from about $1,340 to $3,020 (Note).
(2) Olympic Avenue, Kai Tak (Phase 2): Providing about 3 180 units (including units for one to two persons, three to four persons and four to five persons) in the first stage of application, adjacent to Kai Tak MTR Station, and with a number of franchised bus and minibus routes in the vicinity travelling to/from various places in Hong Kong, Kowloon and the New Territories. The estimated monthly rent ranges from about $1,310 to $2,990 (Note).
(3) Yan Po Road, Tuen Mun: Providing about 2 760 units (including units for one to two persons, three to four persons and four to five persons) in the first stage of application, adjacent to Yan Po Road Public Transport Interchange and bus stops on Yan Po Road, which provide a number of franchised bus routes to/from various places in Hong Kong, Kowloon and the New Territories, and MTR bus routes to/from Tuen Mun and Siu Hong MTR Stations. The estimated monthly rent ranges from about $900 to $2,010 (Note).
(4) Tsing Fat Street, Tuen Mun: Providing about 1 160 units (including units for one to two persons, and three to four persons) in the first stage of application, with a bus terminus within the project, which provides public transport services to/from Tuen Mun Town Centre, Tuen Mun Road Bus-Bus Interchange and other destinations in the urban area during peak hours. The estimated monthly rent ranges from about $900 to $1,610 (Note).
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
CSTB convenes meeting to co-ordinate preparation for visitor arrivals to Hong Kong during Chinese New Year Golden Week of Mainland The meeting was chaired by the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Miss Rosanna Law, with representatives from government departments including the Hong Kong Police Force, the Immigration Department, Hong Kong Customs, the Transport Department, and various District Offices attending. Representatives from various tourism-related organisations including the Travel Industry Authority, the Hong Kong Tourism Board, the Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong, the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority, major tourist attractions and the hotel industry also attended.
Miss Law said, “We are approaching the nine-day Chinese New Year Golden Week of the Mainland, and various districts in Hong Kong will host a variety of festive events to create a rich New Year ambience for residents and visitors. We estimate a notable increase in visitor arrivals during the Chinese New Year Golden Week. Relevant departments of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government will maintain close liaison with relevant organisations and the travel trade to make early preparation and planning with a view to providing a high-quality travel experience for visitors, allowing them to enjoy Hong Kong’s unique festive atmosphere.” Relevant parties will continue to maintain close communication before the Chinese New Year Golden Week of the Mainland to plan and take forward various preparations for welcoming visitors to Hong Kong and report the latest situation in a timely manner to the interdepartmental working group on festival arrangements chaired by the Chief Secretary for Administration. Issued at HKT 16:43
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
Business expectations for the first quarter of 2026 Business Situation
For all surveyed sectors taken together, the proportion of respondents expecting their business situation to be better (11%) in Q1 2026 over the preceding quarter is lower than that expecting it to be worse (14%).
When compared with the results of the Q4 2025 survey round, the proportion of respondents expecting a better business situation in Q1 2026 is 11%, slightly lower than the corresponding proportion in Q4 2025 (13%). At the same time, the proportion of respondents expecting a worse business situation had slightly decreased from 15% in Q4 2025 to 14% in Q1 2026.
Analysed by sector, respondents in most of the surveyed sectors expect their business situation to decrease on balance or remain broadly unchanged in Q1 2026 as compared with Q4 2025. In particular, significantly more respondents in the construction and accommodation and food services sectors expect their business situation to be worse in Q1 2026 as compared with Q4 2025. On the other hand, in the financing and insurance sector, significantly more respondents expect their business situation to be better, as compared to those expecting it to be worse.
The results of the survey should be interpreted with care. In this type of survey on expectations, 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 future accords with the underlying trends. The enumeration period for this survey round was from December 1, 2025 to January 9, 2026.
Volume of Business/Output
Respondents in most of the surveyed sectors expect their volume of business/output to decrease on balance or remain broadly unchanged in Q1 2026 as compared with Q4 2025. In particular, significantly more respondents in the accommodation and food services and construction sectors expect their volume of business/construction output to decrease in Q1 2026 over Q4 2025. On the contrary, in the financing and insurance sector, more respondents expect their volume of business to increase, as compared to those expecting it to decrease.
Employment
Respondents in half of the surveyed sectors expect their employment to remain broadly unchanged in Q1 2026 as compared with Q4 2025. However, significantly more respondents in the construction sector expect their employment to decrease in Q1 2026 over Q4 2025. On the contrary, in the manufacturing and real estate sectors, more respondents expect their employment to increase, as compared to those expecting it to decrease.
Selling Price/Service Charge
Respondents in most of the surveyed sectors expect their selling prices/service charges to remain broadly unchanged in Q1 2026 as compared with Q4 2025. However, more respondents in the construction sector expect their tender prices to go down in Q1 2026 over Q4 2025.
Commentary
A Government spokesman said that the overall near-term business outlook among large enterprises was largely stable for the first quarter of 2026, while the overall hiring appetite showed some slight easing.
Looking forward, the spokesman said that the continued positive momentum of the Hong Kong economy will support local business sentiment. Meanwhile, the Government will stay vigilant to the various uncertainties in the external environment.
Further Information
The survey gathers views on short-term business performance from the senior management of about 570 prominent companies in various sectors in Hong Kong with a view to providing a quick reference, with minimum time lag, for predicting the short-term future economic performance of the local economy.
The survey covers 10 major sectors in Hong Kong, namely manufacturing; construction; import/export trade and wholesale; retail; accommodation and food services (mainly covering services rendered by hotels and restaurants); transportation, storage and courier services; information and communications; financing and insurance; real estate; and professional and business services sectors.
Views collected in the survey refer only to those of respondents on their own companies rather than those on the respective sectors they are engaged in, and are limited to the expected direction of quarter-to-quarter change (e.g. “up”, “same” or “down”) but not the magnitude of change. In collecting views on the quarter-to-quarter changes, if the variable in question is subject to seasonal variations, respondents are asked to provide the expected changes after excluding the normal seasonal variations.
Survey results are generally presented as “net balance”, i.e. the difference between the percentage of respondents choosing “up” and that choosing “down”. The percentage distribution of respondents among various response categories (e.g. “up”, “same” and “down”) reflects how varied their business expectations are. The “net balance”, with its appropriate sign, indicates the direction of expected change in the variable concerned. A positive sign indicates a likely upward trend while a negative sign indicates a likely downward trend. However, the magnitude of the “net balance” reflects only the prevalence of optimism or pessimism, but not the magnitude of expected change, since information relating to such magnitude is not collected in the survey.
Furthermore, owing to sample size constraint, care should be taken in interpreting survey results involving a small percentage (e.g. less than 10%) of respondents in individual sectors.
Chart 1 shows the views on expected changes in business situation for the period Q1 2025 to Q1 2026.
Table 1 shows the net balances of views on expectations in respect of different variables for Q1 2026.
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
Tenders invited for road improvement works at Tai Kei Leng Road and Yuen Ching Road for Yuen Long South New Development Area Second Phase Development The works mainly include: (1) site clearance and formation (including land decontamination works), together with the provision of associated engineering infrastructure; (2) realignment and widening of the existing Tai Kei Leng Road; (3) extension of the existing Yuen Ching Road to connect Long Ho Road; (4) construction of associated works including Pai Laus, noise barriers, junction improvement works, cycle tracks, footpaths, water supply system, sewerage system, drainage system, nullah deckings, slope works, retaining walls, landscaping works, electrical and mechanical works and other ancillary works; and (5) implementation of environmental mitigation measures for the works mentioned above.
The works are scheduled to commence in the second quarter of 2026 and will take about 38 months to complete.
The CEDD has commissioned AECOM Asia Company Limited to design and supervise the works. Interested contractors may download the tender forms and other particulars from the e-Tendering System (e-TS). Tenderers must submit tenders in electronic format via the e-TS.