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Long-term gains worthwhile, Paul Chan says as Hongkongers slam lack of budget sweeteners

Long-term gains worthwhile, Paul Chan says as Hongkongers slam lack of budget sweeteners

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Hong Kong’s financial chief has defended his latest budget against public criticism over the lack of sweeteners, stressing that the government must balance its finances with long-term investments for the city’s benefit. Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said on Thursday he would brief credit-rating agencies and the International Monetary Fund next month on his budget,

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‘Worst is yet to come’: Hong Kong’s early childhood sector hit hard by funding cuts

‘Worst is yet to come’: Hong Kong’s early childhood sector hit hard by funding cuts

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The early childhood education sector will receive its lowest level of subsidy in more than a decade as the number of preschools falls to a 13-year low, with the government cancelling two grants for kindergartens in the new school year. According to the annual budget announced on Wednesday, the early childhood sector will receive only

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HKEX profit jumps 36% to another record high on surging turnover, IPOs

HKEX profit jumps 36% to another record high on surging turnover, IPOs

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Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX), which operates Asia’s third-largest stock exchange, reported record high annual profit for the second straight year, thanks to higher market turnover and robust listing activity, it said in a stock exchange filing on Thursday. Net profit in 2025 increased 36 per cent to HK$17.75 billion (US$2.28 billion), or HK$14.05

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[News] China’s Chip Materials Drive Intensifies as Photoresist Leader Red Avenue Seeks Hong Kong IPO

[News] China’s Chip Materials Drive Intensifies as Photoresist Leader Red Avenue Seeks Hong Kong IPO

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China’s semiconductor push is moving deeper into critical photoresist materials, spotlighting emerging domestic champions. According to ijiwei, Red Avenue New Material Group (RAChem) filed for listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on February 13. As the report highlights, in the first nine months of 2025 the company ranked first among Chinese suppliers by sales

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Apple Daily’s headquarters were located in Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate. Photo: Sam Tsang

Ex-media boss Jimmy Lai wins appeal over fraud conviction

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A Hong Kong appellate court has quashed Jimmy Lai Chee-ying’s fraud conviction for operating a consultancy office from his now-defunct tabloid-style newspaper, Apple Daily, finding that the prosecution failed to prove the jailed former media boss had made a “false representation”. In a judgment delivered on Thursday, the Court of Appeal ruled that the prosecution

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Hong Kong 2026-27 budget: ‘Symphony of Lights’ to go dark under tourism revamp

Hong Kong 2026-27 budget: ‘Symphony of Lights’ to go dark under tourism revamp

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Hong Kong will cancel the two-decade-old “A Symphony of Lights” within the year, with the South China Morning Post learning that the fixture will be replaced with immersive projections across various districts to upgrade the city’s offerings. The revamp is among a raft of new tourism measures announced in finance chief Paul Chan Mo-pop’s latest

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Legal Tales | How Hong Kong law ensures kids’ well-being when divorced parents split locations

Legal Tales | How Hong Kong law ensures kids’ well-being when divorced parents split locations

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I have a habit of re-watching movies during festive times. As we entered the Year of the Horse, one movie that I watched again during Chinese New Year was Marriage Story, a legal drama released on streaming platforms in 2019. The story centres on the divorce of the two lead characters and the resulting legal

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Budget reveal: government turns matchmaker with stronger hand in shaping economy

Budget reveal: government turns matchmaker with stronger hand in shaping economy

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Hong Kong’s finance chief on Wednesday lived up to his credentials as a chartered accountant when he produced a surprisingly robust budget, flush with surpluses and full of initiatives to be funded through substantial means at his disposal. One significant initiative is a rare move to dip into the Exchange Fund, the government’s main investment

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South Korean investors pour millions into MiniMax, other Chinese AI and chip stocks

South Korean investors pour millions into MiniMax, other Chinese AI and chip stocks

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South Korean retail investors, known for their aggressive trading style, are ramping up exposure to Chinese artificial intelligence-related stocks, even as their home market ranks among the world’s top performers. Data from SEIBro, a portal operated by the Korea Securities Depository, showed that South Korean retail investors bought US$507 million worth of Hong Kong-listed shares

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Rare move to take income out of Exchange Fund to pay for Northern Metropolis, other big projects

Rare move to take income out of Exchange Fund to pay for Northern Metropolis, other big projects

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The Hong Kong government has produced a consolidated surplus earlier than expected, its first in four years, ahead of a rare transfer into coffers from the Exchange Fund and other sources. Wednesday’s budget pointed to fund transfers of HK$127.83 billion and an 11.1 per cent jump in government revenues contributing to another surplus for 2026-27,

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Hong Kong Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan 2035: Building a Beautiful Hong Kong Where People and Nature Thrive in Harmony

Hong Kong Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan 2035: Building a Beautiful Hong Kong Where People and Nature Thrive in Harmony

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[The content of this article has been produced by our advertising partner.] Achievements of the Hong Kong Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan In 2016, the Government launched the Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (BSAP), working in concert with all sectors of the community to protect Hong Kong’s precious ecological resources and advance sustainable development. The

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Hong Kong’s virtual asset sector considered for taxation under policy review

Hong Kong’s virtual asset sector considered for taxation under policy review

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A new government committee tasked with reviewing Hong Kong’s tax policies will consider updating them to allow for levies on the virtual asset sector and selected emerging industries, while providing incentives to attract business and investment, the South China Morning Post has learned. The SCMP learned of the development on Wednesday as experts called for

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Hong Kong to set up first national innovation centre outside mainland China

Hong Kong to set up first national innovation centre outside mainland China

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Hong Kong will establish the first national manufacturing innovation centre outside mainland China and a high-level steering committee to spearhead AI development, the finance chief has said, as the city seeks to align with the country’s 15th five-year plan. Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po also unveiled a citywide artificial intelligence (AI) literacy drive in Wednesday’s

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Hong Kong bets big on innovation, AI and finance in line with national goals

Hong Kong bets big on innovation, AI and finance in line with national goals

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Hong Kong is betting big on innovation, artificial intelligence and redoubling its focus on its international financial centre role as it aligns its economic future with the country’s development goals, the financial secretary has said while unveiling a budget allocating billions of dollars to these sectors. Paul Chan Mo-po on Wednesday spotlighted the development of

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Hong Kong boosts investment body’s role in property sector, tech investment drive

Hong Kong boosts investment body’s role in property sector, tech investment drive

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Hong Kong’s government investment agency will take on a bigger role in attracting commercial property investment while advancing the establishment of an alliance focused on Chinese-developed RISC-V chips, as the financial secretary pledged additional funding to the corporation in Wednesday’s budget speech. The Hong Kong Investment Corporation (HKIC), which manages HK$62 billion (US$8 billion) in

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Financial Secretary Paul Chan delivers his budget. Photo: Sam Tsang

Hong Kong seeks to hone edge as offshore yuan hub, digital-asset front runner

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Hong Kong is aiming to sharpen its competitive edge as an offshore yuan hub, an asset and wealth management base, and a digital-asset front runner under Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po’s budget released on Wednesday. Market participants largely welcomed Hong Kong’s renewed push to strengthen its position as an international financial centre, after Chan highlighted

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Paul Chan’s new budget sets aside HK$30 billion to kick-start Northern Metropolis

Paul Chan’s new budget sets aside HK$30 billion to kick-start Northern Metropolis

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Hong Kong’s finance chief has set aside HK$30 billion (US$3.8 billion) to kick-start the Northern Metropolis in his latest budget, aiming to accelerate the megaproject through the government’s partnership with developers and tech enterprises. Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po announced on Wednesday that three companies overseeing the Hetao Hong Kong Park, the San Tin Technopole

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The recovery in Hong Kong’s lived-in home prices started in the second quarter of 2025. Photo: Eugene Lee

Hong Kong’s home prices reach 19-month high as rise gathers pace

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Hong Kong’s lived-in home prices opened the year with a 0.53 per cent month-on-month gain in January, according to official data, sustaining a recovery that began in the second quarter of 2025. Rents in the city, meanwhile, continued to rise, surging by 0.3 per cent from a month earlier to set another peak, according to

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Hong Kong budget sweeteners for residents and businesses climb to HK$22 billion

Hong Kong budget sweeteners for residents and businesses climb to HK$22 billion

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Hong Kong authorities will offer sweeteners of about HK$22 billion (US$2.8 billion) to residents and businesses, up from HK$7.8 billion last year, as public coffers are set to pivot from a deficit to a surplus. Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po on Wednesday announced a raft of tax concessions and allowances in his annual budget, almost

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Financial Secretary Paul Chan has announced an array of industry spending and relief measures in the latest budget. Photo: Eugene Lee

Surpluses, investments, tax breaks: what’s in it for you in Hong Kong’s budget 2026-27

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Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po has announced an array of industry spending and relief measures in Hong Kong’s budget, in response to the city’s quicker-than-expected return to a surplus of HK$2.9 billion (US$370.8 million) in its consolidated account. In a two-hour address to the Legislative Council on Wednesday, Chan pledged substantial government support and investment

Surpluses, investments, tax breaks: what’s in it for you in Hong Kong’s budget 2026-27 Read More »