SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 25 THE ground-breaking ceremony for the New China Hong Kong building in Beijing, a joint development by New China Hong Kong, CNT Group and two Beijing property developers, took place on Friday. Some office units in the building will be offered for pre-sale soon, and the property development should be completed by the end of 1996.
- ORIENTAL DAILY NEWS RUMOURS are rife that Henderson Land will soon offer additional units from two Mid-Levels property developments, Winsome Park and Imperial Court. Though the news was confirmed by some reliable sources, a spokesman from Henderson Land denies the rumours. Property sources say banks' relaxation of the mortgage lending ceiling for luxury residential units will have a positive effect on the sales of such units.
- EXPRESS NEWS LACY HUNT, chief United States economic researcher for HSBC, says the Federal Reserve in the United States notes the need to reverse its monetary policy, and he expects the Fed to begin reducing interest rates by the end of the year. He says the US economy is beginning to slow down, and forecasts the growth rate in the first half of this year will remain at the two per cent level. He says the rate will decline to one per cent and slow even further next year.
- ECONOMIC JOURNAL HONGKONG Telecom's video-on-demand services, which were originally set to be launched in the second half of this year, have been delayed for six to nine months. The services should be introduced in the second quarter of 1996. Hongkong Telecom officials attribute the delay to the time needed for technical experiments and commercial trials.
- SING TAO ACCORDING to a report by Bloomberg, Lai Sun Development signed two joint venture contracts with American Asia-Pacific International Inc under which the Hong Kong group will provide investment services in Vietnam. The report quotes Vietnamese press reports as saying one of Lai Sun's Vietnamese partners is Indochina Strategic, and it will become the flagship for Lai Sun's efforts to explore and participate in direct investments in the country.
Lai Sun's other partner is Dragon Pacific Capital Management, and it will be responsible for economic research and project planning, among other tasks. The two joint ventures will focus on investing in light industries, property, and the construction material sector.
- ECONOMIC TIMES NEW World Development launched 90 residential units from the Crestmont Villa development in Discovery Bay for sale, at an average of $4,590 per square foot. Though the developer did not announce the number of units being sold on the first day, property sources estimate that market response will be only fair.