GMT EIGHT - Economy&politics - Hong Kong

The Hong Kong government's Innovation and Technology Industry Guidance Fund of 10 billion Hong Kong dollars has been approved by the Legislative Council's Finance Committee.

The Hong Kong government proposed to establish the "Innovation and Technology Industry Support Fund" with a new commitment of 10 billion Hong Kong dollars, which was approved by the Finance Committee of the Legislative Council on July 25th.

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (00388): "HKEX LinkConn" will be launched in 2026 to optimize issuer communication and enhance market transparency.

On July 25th, the Hong Kong Exchange (00388) announced the launch of a new online communication platform called "Hong Kong Exchange Newslink", which aims to optimize interaction and communication between listed issuers and the Hong Kong Exchange, and promote the modernization of Hong Kong market infrastructure.

Two former executives of a listed company have been arrested on suspicion of market manipulation and corruption.

The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) and the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong took a joint action codenamed "Operation Leverage" on July 23 to crack down on a sophisticated criminal group suspected of "market-making" through corrupt means and manipulating the shares of a listed company.

Hong Kong Insurance Authority: The total gross premium income reached USD 220.3 billion in the first quarter of 2025.

The Hong Kong Insurance Authority today (July 25) released the interim statistics for the first quarter of 2025, with a total gross premium income of 220.3 billion US dollars.

Hong Kong Investment Promotion Agency: Conflicts in Thailand, Cambodia and other places do not hinder Hong Kong's trade development.

Liu Kaixuan, the Director of Invest Hong Kong, stated that Hong Kong's stock market and fundraising for new stocks have been performing very well this year. Even though conflicts have occurred in other parts of the world such as the Middle East, Europe, and the Thailand-Cambodia border, leading to trade instability, it has not affected Hong Kong's trade development or the department's efforts to attract investment in major commercial cities in the ASEAN region.

MPF rating: It is expected that the average earnings per person for Hong Kong's Mandatory Provident Fund will reach 5,380 Hong Kong dollars in July, and the total assets are expected to reach a new record high.

Research institutions predict that the Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) in Hong Kong will achieve a 1.81% investment return in July this year. In terms of amount, the estimated investment returns for July are approximately 25.8 billion Hong Kong dollars, which means each individual is expected to earn around 5,380 Hong Kong dollars on average.

Hong Kong dollar interbank rates generally increased, with overnight rates hitting a two-and-a-half-month high.

On July 25, Hong Kong Interbank Offered Rate (HIBOR) generally rose, with the one-month HIBOR related to mortgages reporting 0.91679%, ending its decline and increasing by 1.822 basis points, the highest since July 23.

Hang Seng Index Company: Hang Seng Tech Index rose by over 53% in the past year. DeepSeek model has become a key catalyst.

As of July 18, 2025, the upward trend in Hong Kong stocks since the beginning of the year has driven the Hang Seng Index to increase by over 53% in the past year, outperforming the overall market represented by the Hang Seng Composite Index by 12 percentage points.

Hong Kong Housing Authority: Public housing completion exceeded expectations, gradually reversing the situation of a "heavy head and light tail" supply.

Hong Kong Housing Authority Director Stanley Ho Wing-yin said in an interview that the Housing Authority has completed 168,000 public housing units since the 2022/23 fiscal year, far exceeding the original estimate of 105,000 units, gradually reversing the situation of "heavy at the end of supply".

Sun Yuhuan: The Hong Kong government's importation of labor scheme ensures that local workers in Hong Kong are given priority for employment.

Sun Yuhuan mentioned that, whether it is the three industry-specific importation labor schemes introduced by the Hong Kong government or the "Supplementary Labor Optimization Scheme", the main goal is to ensure that local workers are given priority in employment in Hong Kong, while also allowing room for the development of the economy and industries. However, the prerequisite is to ensure that local workers in Hong Kong are given priority in employment.

Hong Kong Bankers Association: It is expected that HIBOR will remain relatively low in the second half of the year compared to the beginning of the year, and the financial market is expected to remain active.

The Hong Kong Bankers Association predicts that the Hong Kong Interbank Offered Rate (HIBOR) will remain low in the second half of the year compared to the beginning of the year, which is favorable for economic recovery, and the financial market is expected to remain active.

Hong Kong Monetary Authority: The second phase of mandatory background checks for the banking industry will be implemented by the end of September, extending to licensed employees in securities and insurance sectors.

On July 24, Arthur Yuen, Deputy Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, stated that the second phase of the "Mandatory Background Check Program" for the banking industry will be implemented on September 30.

Hong Kong Real Estate: It is expected that there will be around 5800 residential property transactions registered in Hong Kong in July.

It is expected that in July, the total number of registered residential properties will be around 5800, which is slightly lower than in June, but still higher than the average level in the first half of this year.

In June, Macau's overall consumer price index increased by 0.25% year-on-year and by 0.04% month-on-month.

On July 24, data from the Statistics and Census Service of Macau showed that the Composite Consumer Price Index rose by 0.25% annually and 0.04% monthly in June 2025.

Macao: The number of inbound tourists in the first half of the year was about 19.2185 million, which is a 14.9% increase compared to the same period last year.

On July 24, data from the Statistics and Census Bureau of Macao showed that in the first half of 2025, a total of 19,218,540 inbound tourists visited, an increase of 14.9% compared to the previous year.

Xu Zhengyu: Use multiple measures to improve Hong Kong's elderly care system and promote the silver economy.

The Hong Kong government, following the policy of "aging in place as the priority, institutional care as the back-up", provides government-subsidized long-term care services for frail elderly people in need of care, assisting them to receive appropriate care in the community or in residential care homes.

Hong Kong Labour and Welfare Bureau Director Sun Yuhang: Several departments actively plan to increase the fertility rate measures and expand childcare services to all 18 districts in Hong Kong.

Secretary for Labor and Welfare of Hong Kong, Ms. Sun Yuk Han, stated that various policy bureaus and departments of the SAR government have been actively planning measures to increase the birth rate.

The Hong Kong dollar interbank interest rate has developed differently, with the one-month interest rate hitting the lowest level in nearly three weeks.

On July 24, the Hong Kong dollar interbank interest rate showed divergent developments, with the one-month interbank offer rate related to the property sector stopping its two-day consecutive increase and dropping by 3.96 basis points to 0.89857%, the lowest since July 4.

Hong Kong rental market continues to heat up. In the first half of the year, the proportion of residential rentals with monthly rents exceeding HKD 20,000 has increased to nearly 44%.

Liu Jiahui stated that, according to the residential leasing cases facilitated by Colliers International, the proportion of monthly rents exceeding 20,000 Hong Kong dollars in the first half of this year was about 43.9%, an increase of 3 percentage points from the same period last year, which was about 40.9%.

HKEX: Hong Kong's new share financing amount reached 14.1 billion US dollars in the first half of the year, an increase of 695% year-on-year.

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX) releases the "Review of Hong Kong Equity Financing Market in the First Half of 2025".

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