Smart Tips for Buying Textbooks for the New School Year; “Smart Parent Net” Recommendation: 放手不放棄︰成為孩子最堅強的後盾(Chinese version only)

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 3

Summer is approaching. When you receive your children’s textbook lists for the new school year, do you start to worry about buying textbooks? The Education Bureau (EDB) has prepared three smart tips to help you save time, money and hassle when buying textbooks, allowing you to spend more quality time with your children as they prepare for the new school year.Pay close attention to the title, edition and publisher information on the textbook list to avoid buying the wrong items. Textbooks marked as “Reprinted” or “Reprinted with Minor Amendments” generally contain only minor amendments or updates, meaning you may choose new textbooks or second-hand copies of the previous edition, depending on your needs.Buying textbooks collectively through schools can often help you save money. If your children already own learning materials on the textbook list which can still be used, such as dictionaries, atlases, or religious texts, there is no need to repurchase them. If you opt for second-hand textbooks, you only have to buy new supplementary learning materials on the textbook list, such as e-learning accounts, workbooks or worksheets. For details on buying these supplementary materials, you may contact the school, bookstores or publishers.The EDB has been encouraging parents to purchase or pre-order textbooks for their children as early as possible to avoid last-minute rushes. Before purchasing, you may visit the EDB’s Textbook Information webpage (https://www.edb.gov.hk/textbook“Textbook Information” Webpage“Tips for Purchasing Textbooks”e-leaflet (2025 Version)

 

Invest Hong Kong strengthens Web3 and fintech ties between Hong Kong and Japan (with photos)

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK) has successfully concluded an impactful visit to Japan, deepening business ties between the two places. The delegation’s primary objectives were to promote two-way business opportunities in Web3 and fintech, and to facilitate strategic technology investments that benefit bothplaces.

From June 30 to July 4, Senior Vice President of Fintech at InvestHK Ms Pauline Fan led a delegation of 16 Hong Kong companies, organisations, universities and a family office to Japan. These included Hong Kong Baptist University, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and Web3 Harbour. Meetings and events were held in Osaka and Kyoto together with partners in Japan, including HashPort, Headline Asia, and IVC.

In Osaka on June 30 and July 1, delegates engaged with key players in innovation and digital transformation. They met with members of the Osaka Prefectural Government, the Osaka Digital Exchange, the Japan External Trade Organization, SBI Corporation, Plug and Play Japan, the NTT West Corporate Innovation Center and more. These meetings facilitated meaningful exchanges and explorations of new business partnerships and investments. The momentum continued in Kyoto from July 2 to 4 at IVS 2025, the largest start-up conference in Japan, organised by Headline Asia and IVC. Industry leaders and emerging start-ups exchanged insights on fundraising, business partnerships, and breakthrough trends in Web3 and more.

Associate Director-General of Investment Promotion at InvestHK Mr Arnold Lau said “This delegation marks a significant milestone in solidifying the collaboration between Hong Kong and Japan in innovation and technology. With a strong influx of innovative ideas and investment flows between both sides, we are entering a pioneering era where groundbreaking technologies in Web3 and fintech are poised to redefine the future of digital economies.”

This delegation visit came at a perfect time following the Policy Statement 2.0 on the Development of Digital Assets in Hong Kong, issued by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government on June 26. It reinforces the HKSAR Government’s commitment to establishing Hong Kong as a global hub for innovation in the digital asset (DA) field. The statement introduces the “LEAP” framework: Legal and regulatory streamlining, expanding the suite of tokenised products, advancing use cases and cross-sectoral collaboration, and people and partnership development. It sets out a vision for a trusted and innovative DA ecosystem that prioritises risk management and investor protection, while delivering concrete benefits to the real economy and financial markets.

“Our dedicated team at InvestHK is ready to support players in the DA ecosystem, connecting prospective DA service providers with banks and professional services to facilitate their business setup and expansion in Hong Kong,” Mr Lau added.

Two-way business success driving the agenda forward

Japanese firm Zaiko was the first company to establish a presence in Hong Kong through a similar delegation to Japan in 2024, facilitated by InvestHK. As a key portfolio company of Headline Asia, Zaiko serves as a platform that connects creators directly with people through digital events, video streaming, and data analytics. This inward investment exemplifies the potential for Japanese technology expertise to seamlessly merge with the vibrant economic sectors of Hong Kong, such as creative and event industries.

Waffo established a Hong Kong office in 2023 as its strategic hub for Asia and immediately joined the 2024 InvestHK Japan delegation. The company uncovered new opportunities and successfully entered the Japanese market by opening representative offices, collaborating with multiple Japanese clients and launching innovative cross-border payment and risk-management solutions. Leveraging Hong Kong as its launch pad, Waffo once again participated in this year’s delegation to further accelerate its growth in Japan.

The Goldian Group is a diversified conglomerate headquartered in Hong Kong with a strong background in real estate development. In recent years, its family office has strategically pivoted towards the fast-evolving field of digital assets. With the support and facilitation from InvestHK, the Group has gained access to cutting-edge market intelligence, advanced fintech applications and high-potential business opportunities in Hong Kong’s financial ecosystem. Leveraging these advantages, the Goldian Group joined this year’s delegation and formally launched a real estate tokenisation initiative in Japan, marking a key step in cross-border digital asset innovation and regional collaboration.

With these achievements, InvestHK’s latest delegation clearly illustrates the rising synergy between Hong Kong and Japan’s Web3 and fintech industries, a collaboration that promises a new chapter of ingenuity, growth, and mutual prosperity. As both markets continue to harness innovation and investment, the future looks brighter than ever for such two-way partnerships in the digital economy.

Rosanna Law starts visit to France

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

Secretary for Culture, Sports & Tourism Rosanna Law yesterday started the first leg of her visit to France in Paris, by touring Disneyland Paris and meeting French Ministry of Culture Secretary General Luc Allaire.

Apart from gaining first-hand insights of the theme park’s latest developments during her tour, Miss Law shared with Disneyland Paris President Natacha Rafalski that Hong Kong Disneyland Resort has just launched its 20th-anniversary celebrations, which will bring all-new experiences to visitors.

This was followed by a courtesy call on Ambassador Extraordinary & Plenipotentiary of the People’s Republic of China to the French Republic and the Principality of Monaco Deng Li.

Miss Law expressed her hope to foster closer exchanges between Hong Kong and France, highlighting the opportunities for collaboration across various sectors.

At her afternoon meeting with Mr Allaire, Miss Law underscored Hong Kong’s dedication to fostering cultural exchanges on both the regional and global levels, and shared her vision of transforming the city into a hub for hosting large-scale museum events.

Both parties expressed a shared enthusiasm for expanding collaboration, and reaffirmed their commitment to further deepening cultural connections and partnerships in the future.

Legislative Council Members and Kwai Tsing District Council members visit proposed lift and pedestrian walkway system between Lai King Hill Road and Lai Cho Road (with photos)

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Legislative Council Members and Kwai Tsing District Council members visit proposed lift and pedestrian walkway system between Lai King Hill Road and Lai Cho Road  
     The Legislative Council (LegCo) Members and Kwai Tsing District Council (DC) members inspected the proposed lift and pedestrian walkway system between Lai King Hill Road and Lai Cho Road, Kwai Chung today (July 4) to follow up on the issue of enhancing barrier-free facilities in the district, which was raised at the meeting held in LegCo by both sides on May 23 this year.
 
     LegCo Members first received a briefing by representatives of the Highways Department on the plans for the proposed lift and pedestrian walkway system between Lai King Hill Road and Lai Cho Road, including demolition of existing slopes, construction of a covered walkway and a lift tower with two elevators, as well as ancillary environmental beautification and drainage works.
 
     LegCo Members then walked from Lai King Hill Road footbridge to Lai Cho Road to experience walking the long staircase connecting the two locations and inspect the surrounding conditions. Members also exchanged views with Kwai Tsing DC members and representatives of the Administration on the related works. Members urged the Administration to submit the funding proposal for the works as soon as possible, and enhance the speed and efficiency for early completion of the project, so as to facilitate the daily travel of the residents.
 
     Members who participated in the visit were Dr Junius Ho, Dr Chan Han-pan, Dr Lo Wai-kwok, Mr Chan Yung, Ms Joephy Chan and Dr So Cheung-wing.
Issued at HKT 17:27

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Justice Secretary to visit Europe

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

Secretary for Justice Paul Lam will depart for Europe tomorrow to visit the Netherlands, France and Italy to introduce Hong Kong’s latest legal developments, promote its strengths in legal and dispute resolution services, and explore collaboration on international capacity building.

 

Mr Lam plans to attend seminars organised by the Department of Justice and other exchange sessions.

 

He will also deliver speeches to legal and business sectors to introduce Hong Kong’s unique advantages in the practice of the common law system under the “one country, two systems”, the strategic positioning of the city as an international legal and dispute resolution services centre in the Asia-Pacific region, and its important role as a “super connector” and “super value-adder” between the Mainland and the rest of the world.

 

The Secretary for Justice will return to Hong Kong on July 13 upon conclusion of his visit in Rome. Deputy Secretary for Justice Cheung Kwok-kwan will be Acting Secretary during his absence.

Winnie Ho promotes GBA in Portugal

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

Secretary for Housing Winnie Ho attended a business luncheon during her visit to Lisbon, Portugal, to promote development opportunities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA).

At the business luncheon co-organised by the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Development Office under the Constitutional & Mainland Affairs Bureau and the Hong Kong Economic & Trade Office in Brussels, Ms Ho promoted the vast opportunities for Portuguese companies arising from the development of the GBA, and how Hong Kong can play its important roles as a “super connector” and “super value-adder” between the two places with its unique advantages of having the strong support of the motherland while maintaining unparalleled connectivity with the world.

Around 130 participants attended the luncheon, with representatives from over 80 Portuguese enterprises from the construction sector, information technology sector, commercial sector and professional organisations as well as representatives from 17 relevant Hong Kong enterprises.

During the luncheon, Ms Ho highlighted that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government has been actively promoting the use of innovative construction technologies to enhance the speed, quantity, quality and efficiency in increasing the supply of affordable housing.

Under the Housing • I&T initiative this year, the Housing Bureau will organise a series of activities to foster exchanges between Hong Kong and other countries and regions in areas such as smart construction, smart estate management, energy saving and green buildings. She encouraged Portuguese enterprises to seize these opportunities and strengthen collaborations with the Mainland and Hong Kong.

Ms Ho expressed her gratitude to the trade representatives from Hong Kong, including those participating in the construction of public housing, Light Public Housing (LPH) and transitional housing, for attending the luncheon in Lisbon and taking the opportunity to share in person with the participants Hong Kong’s opportunities and advantages in connecting the Mainland and the world.

By complying with international standards, stipulating local regulations and harnessing the strengths of the GBA in smart construction, Hong Kong can further advance in its development of Modular Integrated Construction (MiC), the transfer of on-site construction processes to factories and the application of construction robotics.

With the expeditious building of LPH and transitional housing, the living conditions and quality of life of people living in inadequate housing can be improved as soon as practicable. The significant housing production target of 308,000 public housing units over the next 10 years also enables the bureau and the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HKHA) to promote the adoption of innovative technologies and advance public housing developments in a new era of smart construction.

Earlier in the day, Ms Ho visited EntreCampos, a local redevelopment project jointly developed by the public and private sectors, comprising social housing for middle-class residents, offices, retail, community facilities and green spaces. The project adopted Building Information Modelling (BIM) during construction. She also visited the new headquarters of an insurance company in the project. The building employs smart technologies and innovative sustainable energy systems to enhance energy efficiency.

Ms Ho stated that the HKHA has strived to promote greener and more energy-efficient designs, aiming to attain a gold rating or above under BEAM Plus for all new housing developments.

The measures include adopting MiC in construction with modules manufactured accurately and effectively in factories, and other innovative technologies such as BIM to facilitate planning throughout the construction process and enhance management, which can save energy, reduce waste and make the construction process more environmentally friendly.

The housing chief said she looked forward to continued exchanges between Hong Kong and Portugal on innovative construction technologies and green building designs.

Applications open for auction of spectrum in 2.5/2.6 GHz band

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Applications open for auction of spectrum in 2.5/2.6 GHz band 
     A spokesperson for OFCA said, “As announced in the 2024 Policy Address, the Government will continue to make available more suitable radio spectrum to the market in a timely manner to support wider and more advanced applications of communications technology (including 6G). The Communications Authority (CA) and the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development (SCED) issued a joint statement in April this year, announcing the decision to reassign a total of 50 MHz of spectrum in the aforementioned band through auction in the fourth quarter of this year. The mid-band spectrum balances the needs of both network coverage and capacity and has the potential to support mobile broadband services and other innovative applications using 5G or more advanced mobile services.”
 
     The CA will conduct the auction of the 50 MHz of spectrum in the aforementioned band on October 20. The spectrum will be reassigned to the successful bidders under unified carrier licences with a new assignment period of about 10 years and 10 months. The arrangement enables all 140 MHz of spectrum in the 2.5/2.6 GHz band to expire together on March 30, 2039, so that the CA can carry out holistic spectrum planning and reassign relevant spectrum more flexibly having regard to future mobile technology development to enhance spectral efficiency. Parties interested in participating in the auction may submit their applications to OFCA from September 4 to 5.
 
     The SCED has set the auction reserve price for the use of the spectrum in the 2.5/2.6 GHz band, i.e. $4 million per MHz. The actual amount of spectrum utilization fees payable will be determined through the auction.
 
     Detailed arrangements for the auction are set out in the information memorandumIssued at HKT 16:25

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335 direct university offers accepted

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

The Education Bureau announced today that the selection process for the fourth cohort under the School Nominations Direct Admission Scheme (SNDAS) is complete, with 335 students accepting university offers.

A total of 814 valid nominations were received from 420 secondary schools for the fourth cohort, the bureau said.

The eight University Grants Committee (UGC)-funded universities participating in the scheme then arranged interviews for the nominated students and carefully considered their merits.

Firm offers were made to 342 successful nominees prior to the release of this year’s Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (HKDSE) Examination results. Of these nominees, 335 accepted their offers and will begin studies in their chosen undergraduate programmes, across a wide spectrum of disciplines, in September.

Secretary for Education Choi Yuk-lin said she was pleased to note the encouraging results of the fourth cohort, in particular the continuing increase in the number of offers made to the nominees.

She thanked the secondary schools and universities for their support for the SNDAS as well as their recognition of students’ multifaceted talents, and for cultivating more talent for Hong Kong.

Ms Choi highlighted that talent in diversified skills and knowledge is the key to Hong Kong’s future development.

In addition to stressing that the Government has always placed great emphasis on nurturing young people, she added that it is striving to enhance the city’s education system and creating diverse opportunities for students to reach their full potential in different areas.

Separately, each of the eight UGC-funded universities will be invited to nominate SNDAS admittees demonstrating an outstanding performance in arts, sports and/or community service for awarding scholarships in addition to the firm offers made.

Additionally, to promote a culture of multifaceted excellence, the Home & Youth Affairs Bureau has launched the Multi-talent Development Scholarship for admittees of the SNDAS demonstrating outstanding achievements in arts, sports and/or community service on top of the firm offers made under the SNDAS.

Each awardee, not subject to means testing, will be granted a scholarship of $10,000 per year across his or her four-year tuition period.

The scheme’s fifth round will open to Secondary 6 students who will sit for the next HKDSE Examination and start their undergraduate studies in September 2026. Details will be announced in due course.

EC subsector bypoll nominations set

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

The nomination period for the 2025 Election Committee Subsector By-elections will run from July 22 until August 4.

The by-elections will fill a total of 93 vacancies in the Election Committee (EC) membership to be returned by election involving 28 subsectors.

Another 10 vacancies involving five subsectors to be returned by nomination will be filled through supplementary nominations by designated bodies.

The Registration & Electoral Office (REO) issued gazette notices about the nominations and the appointment of Returning Officers (ROs) today.

If the number of validly nominated candidates for a subsector exceeds the number of EC members to be elected for that subsector at the by-elections, a poll for that subsector will be held on September 7.

A person nominated as a candidate must be a registered geographical constituency elector aged 18 or above, who is a registered voter for the relevant subsector or has a substantial connection with that subsector.

The nomination form for the by-elections must be subscribed by no fewer than five voters registered for the subsector concerned.

Each voter may subscribe multiple nominations on a particular subsector but the number of candidates he or she can nominate should not exceed that of EC members to be elected by that subsector at the bypolls.

In the case of a corporate voter, the subscription of the nomination form may only be effected by the corporate voter’s authorised representative.

Starting today, the nomination forms are available at the REO’s two Kowloon offices, located on 8/F, Treasury Building, Cheung Sha Wan; and Unit 2301-03, 23/F, Millennium City 6, Kwun Tong.

The forms can also be picked up at the ROs’ offices, district offices, or downloaded from here.

A nominated person must submit the completed nomination form and an election deposit of $1,000 in person to the respective ROs.

Separately, the nominated persons must complete and return the Eligibility Review Supplementary Information Form, in accordance with the Candidate Eligibility Review Committee’s requirements.

Members of the public may inspect copies of the nomination forms for respective subsectors at the ROs’ offices, and view copies of all the nomination forms at the REO’s Kwun Tong office.

Call the election hotline 2891 1001 for enquiries.

The Draft Amendments to the Electricity Act Passes Third Legislative Reading, Strengthening Electricity Market Operations

Source: Republic of China Taiwan

The Legislative Yuan passed the draft amendment to some articles of the Electricity Act in the third reading today (May 9). According to the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA), these amendments are made in response to domestic and international energy transition trends, which enable Taiwan Power Company (Taipower) to maintain its current business model, while stimulating the green electricity trading market; regulate emerging electricity resources, such as grid-connected energy storage and demand response; and enhance the supervision mechanism of the electricity trading platform. A total of 12 articles have been newly added or amended. The MOEA expressed its gratitude to the President of the Legislative Yuan, all legislators, and political parties for their support in ensuring the smooth passage of the bill.

According to the MOEA, the draft amendment focuses on four key areas: maintaining Taipower’s integrated business model to ensure stable power supply through the synergy of integrated power generation and grid operations and enhancing investment efficiency; facilitating peer-to-peer sales among retailers of renewable energy to increase operational flexibility for industry participants; regulating grid-connected energy storage systems and demand response services to ensure legal compliance and reduce the setup risks for operators while expanding potential power resources; and enhancing the neutrality of electricity trading platforms by strengthening the monitoring mechanism to ensure openness and transparency, and by allowing independent trading to emerge in response to future market developments.

The MOEA also thanks all stakeholders for their valuable input throughout the legislative process, while pledging to swiftly complete related modifications of subordinate regulations to achieve the objectives of this legislative amendment.

Spokesperson: Deputy Director General, Chih-Wei Wu
Energy Administration, Ministry of Economic Affairs
Phone: +886-2-2775-7750 / +886-922-339-410
Email: cwwu@moeaea.gov.tw

Business Contact: Director, Yu-Chuan Hsia
Energy Administration, Ministry of Economic Affairs
Phone: +886-2-2775-7753 / +886-910-668-295
Email: yhhsia@moeaea.gov.tw