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Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

​The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health today (May 23) said that there are early signs that the rate of increase in the COVID-19 activity level in Hong Kong has begun to slow down. However, it is expected to remain at a relatively high level in the near future. High-risk individuals, especially the elderly and those with underlying illnesses, should continue to stay vigilant and receive a free booster dose in a timely manner to minimise the risk of serious complications or death after infection.
 
“The CHP believes that COVID-19 has become an endemic disease with cyclical patterns. Epidemiological data from local and other regions around the world show that there are generally periodic upsurges in the COVID-19 activity level every six to nine months. However, the timing of the increase in the activity level of COVID-19 may vary from region to region depending on local factors, such as the herd immunity of the population and changes in the circulating strains and vaccination rates,” said the Controller of the CHP, Dr Edwin Tsui.
 
“Hong Kong has experienced an upsurge in COVID-19 cases since April this year, more than half a year after the last increase in July and August of last year. This increase is expected and similar to last year’s increase, with no unusual situations. Although some surveillance indicators suggest that the upward trend of COVID-19 has begun to slow down over the past week, we expect the activity level of COVID-19 to remain at a high levels in the coming few weeks,” Dr Tsui said.
 
According to the latest surveillance data as of the week ending May 17, the increase in the viral load of the SARS-CoV-2 virus from sewage surveillance and the test positivity rate of respiratory samples have slowed down when compared to the past week. Among them, the percentage of respiratory samples testing positive for the SARS-CoV-2 virus increased slightly from 13.66 per cent in the week ending May 10 to 13.8 per cent. For sewage surveillance, the per capita viral load of SARS-CoV-2 virus increased from around 710 000 copy/litre to 770 000 copy/litre, but the rate of increase was significantly lower than that of the previous two weeks.
 
The upsurge of COVID-19 cases in the last one or two months is a regional phenomenon. Neighbouring areas such as Singapore, Thailand, Mainland China and Taiwan have also recorded a similar increase in the number of COVID-19 cases. Japan and Korea experienced upsurges of COVID-19 cases from January to February and from March to April this year respectively, and these surges have already slowed down. In North America and Europe, the activity level of COVID-19 peaked in the third quarter of last year, then declined in the fourth quarter, and has remained relatively stable so far this year.
 
“In general, the symptoms of COVID-19 infection in the general public are mostly mild, similar to other common respiratory infections. There is no need for the public to be overly concerned. However, high-risk groups (including the elderly and young children, persons with underlying illnesses and persons who are immunocompromised) are more likely to develop severe symptoms. Therefore, COVID-19 vaccination is important to protect these high-risk populations,” Dr Tsui added.
 
Apart from vaccination, the public should maintain stringent personal, environmental and hand hygiene at all times to minimise the risk of contracting COVID-19 and other respiratory infectious diseases. When respiratory symptoms appear, one should wear a surgical mask, consider avoiding going to work or school, avoid going to crowded places and seek medical advice promptly.
 
For the latest surveillance data, members of the public can refer to the CHP’s weekly COVID-19 & Flu Express. For more information on vaccination, please refer to the COVID-19 Vaccination Programme webpage.

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

Secretary for Housing Winnie Ho concluded her visit to Paris, France, yesterday by meeting a representative of a social housing association, a renowned urban planner and government officials there.

 

In the morning, Ms Ho met a representative of CDC Habitat, a social housing association in France, to learn more about the mode of operation, development strategies, and challenges of social housing there. She also devoted time to highlight Hong Kong’s situation and the various housing initiatives being implemented by the Housing Bureau.

 

Ms Ho then visited an integrated residential and commercial community comprising social housing, which was transformed from the Olympic Athletes’ Village, to learn about sustainable urban development.

 

While meeting a renowned urban planner, IAE Paris Sorbonne Business School Associate Professor Carlos Moreno, Ms Ho shared her vision and thoughts on sustainable urban planning and design.

 

Prof Moreno put forward the urban planning concept of the “15-minute city”, which aims to enable residents in a community to meet their daily needs for food, clothing, housing and transport within a 15-minute walking or cycling distance and enhance environmental sustainability.

 

Ms Ho pointed out that this coincides with the planning concept of the Housing Authority’s new public housing estates and cited Queen’s Hill Estate as an example, demonstrating the planning of a resident-oriented, self-sufficient community that embraces cultural heritage and blends with nature to create a sustainable community. Prof Moreno expressed his wish to have the opportunity to visit Hong Kong in the future.

 

In the evening, Ms Ho met Advisor to the Mayor on housing, urban planning, architecture, land development Renaud Paque, and Director of Housing & Habitat Doan Lebel to exchange views on public housing policies and experiences on sustainable urbanisation and urban planning concepts.

 

Concluding the trip, Ms Ho stated that this visit tied in with the Housing Bureau’s Housing•I&T initiative this year, introducing the latest developments of advanced technology companies from Hong Kong and the Mainland in the areas of construction technologies, public housing, green building, etc, as well as demonstrating to the world the application of technologies such as Modular Integrated Construction and construction robots that help enhance construction efficiency and safety.

 

The housing chief emphasised that the Government will actively make reference to overseas experiences on decarbonisation and energy-saving technologies, and fully capitalise on Hong Kong’s unique advantages, reinforce connectivity, and play the role as a “super connector” and a “super value-adder”.

 

“I expect that the two cities will maintain liaison and strengthen exchanges in areas such as innovative building technologies, public housing construction, green buildings, well-being communities, and enhancing the housing ladder to give new impetus to public housing construction,” Ms Ho added.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

The Government announced that company re-domiciliation is open for application as the Companies (Amendment) (No. 2) Ordinance 2025 came into effect today.

 

A company incorporated outside Hong Kong may apply to the Companies Registry (CR) for re-domiciliation to the city.

 

The Government explained that the re-domiciliation mechanism reduces the need to go through complicated and costly judicial procedures, and enables a re-domiciled company to maintain its legal identity as a body corporate, thereby ensuring business continuity.

 

Meanwhile, an applicant for company re-domiciliation must fulfil requirements concerning company background, integrity, member and creditor protection, solvency and so on, it added.

 

In Hong Kong’s new re-domiciliation regime, certain types of companies are eligible to apply. They include private companies limited by shares, public companies limited by shares, private unlimited companies with a share capital, and public unlimited companies with a share capital, or a type comparable to the four types of companies.

 

Under normal circumstances, the CR will complete the approval process within two weeks of the applicant submitting the required documents and information. A 120-day period will be allowed for the re-domiciled company to complete the deregistration procedures at its place of incorporation.

 

For regulatory purposes of the insurance and banking sectors, a non-Hong Kong-incorporated authorised insurer, or an authorised institution (AI), a holding company of an AI or an approved money broker should approach the Insurance Authority or the Monetary Authority for prior assessment before applying for re-domiciliation.

 

Click here for more information on company re-domiciliation procedures.

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

The Electrical & Mechanical Services Department (EMSD) announces that it is investigating a train suspension incident that happened yesterday evening on the MTR Tseung Kwan O Line, which was caused by a failure of the traction power supply system.

 

At around 5.15pm yesterday, the Government received notification from the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL) that services on the Tseung Kwan O Line were disrupted and subsequently suspended.

 

The Government expressed that it is deeply concerned about the incident. The EMSD has requested the MTRCL to conduct a comprehensive review and submit an investigation report as soon as possible to explain the cause of the incident and propose improvement measures to prevent recurrence of similar incidents.

 

Upon receiving notification from the MTRCL, the EMSD immediately deployed professional railways and electrical engineers to the site to assess the situation and conduct an investigation.

 

Preliminary findings indicated that a section of the overhead cable was found faulted in the tunnel of the Tseung Kwan O Line near Quarry Bay Station. The traction power supply system was tripped when the train passed through the section.

 

The EMSD also found signs of damage to the overhead cable at the scene and initially suspected that the cause of incident was related to the damage of cable components.

 

In addition to continuing its investigation at the scene concerning the traction power supply system, the department made it clear that it will inspect the train that was involved in the incident at the depot.

 

The investigation encompasses the consideration of power distribution system, train components, environmental conditions and human factors, etc.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Hong Kong Customs yesterday (May 22) detected a suspected money laundering case involving about $61 million in crime proceeds subsequent to a follow-up investigation of a dangerous drug case identified last year. Two local women and one local man suspected to be connected with the case were arrested.
 
In October last year, Customs detected a dangerous drug case involving about $1.9 million worth of drugs and arrested two local persons suspected to be connected with the case. A subsequent financial investigation and fund-flow analysis revealed that there were numerous suspicious transactions, which were suspected to be crime proceeds, in the personal bank accounts of one of the arrestees. Meanwhile, the investigation also revealed that a 55-year-old local woman and a 30-year-old local man transferred or received the suspected crime proceeds. During the period between January and December 2024, the total amount of the suspicious transactions handled by the three arrestees reached about $61 million.
 
Upon further investigation, Customs arrested the 55-year-old local woman and 30-year-old local man yesterday for “dealing with property known or reasonably believed to represent proceeds of an indictable offenses” (commonly known as money laundering) under the Organized and Serious Crimes Ordinance (OSCO) and searched their residential premises in Ho Man Tin and Tung Chung. Three mobile phones were seized in the operation. On the same day, Customs officers also further arrested a 63-year-old local woman who has been remanded due to the related drug trafficking case, for money laundering.
 
Two of the arrested persons have been released on bail pending investigation, while one arrested person continues to be remanded in custody. The investigation of the case is still ongoing, and the likelihood of further arrests is not ruled out.
 
Under the OSCO, a person commits an offence if he or she deals with any property knowing or having reasonable grounds to believe that such property, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly represents any person’s proceeds of an indictable offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $5 million and imprisonment for 14 years while the crime proceeds are also subject to confiscation.
     
Members of the public may report any suspected money laundering activities to Customs’ 24-hour hotline 182 8080 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk) or online form (eform.cefs.gov.hk/form/ced002).

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region