Bus travel irregularities adding up to millions Commuters who travel by bus are effectively subsidising loss-making routes by paying a high premium when they cross the harbour - an irregularity due to the government's fare-mechanism policy that adds up to hundreds of millions of dollars a year, a study by the South China Morning Post revealed. A Transport Advisory Committee member, who declined to be named, said the government was keen to investigate the irregularities in bus fares. Data base proposals ring alarm bells Proposals to establish a data base of personal loans could be open to abuse by bank staff working outside Hong Kong where there are no laws to protect privacy. In an interview with ATV's Newsline programme, Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data Raymond Tang Yee-bong said the SAR would have no control over data that was accessed from another jurisdiction such as the mainland. Mr Tang said he was confident that with China's accession to the World Trade Organisation it would be forced to develop its own privacy regime to fulfil WTO requirements. Job quiz show fails to entice An ATV quiz show offering jobs as prizes has attracted a meagre response from the unemployed - about 30 applicants - despite a record jobless rate of 7.8 per cent, or 275,000 people. The one-hour show, provisionally titled Win a Job, will be screened twice a week for three months from the end of this month. An ATV spokeswoman said a dozen employers had already pledged to provide 100 jobs in total, including a number in the tourism and media industries and some as waiters and dim-sum makers. PCCW offers leaving incentives After weeks of speculation about job cuts, PCCW made a novel offer to more than 1,000 employees: quit in exchange for three years of guaranteed work as sub-contractors. Analysts expect the measure to save PCCW at least HK$240 million on its payroll. Unions reacted cautiously to the announcement, saying staff should be offered better financial incentives and have more time to consider the proposal. PCCW said it would help in the start-up progress for the new companies and would offer advice on business plans and other matters. The contractors would also be free to accept other business, PCCW said. Money-laundering up this year A record 6,800 suspected cases of money-laundering were reported to police in the first eight months of this year - more than the whole of last year. Acting Police Commossioner Lau Yuk-kuen said the figure reflected heightened vigilance by financial institutions, especially in the wake of the September 11 terror attacks in the United States. Mr Lau said while such reports had in the past led to the confiscation of money from organised crime syndicates, none so far had been confirmed as involving terrorist organisations. The number is the highest figure recorded since the Joint Financial Intelligence Unit's formation in 1989. Counterfeit $1,000 notes make reappearance Counterfeit HK$1,000 notes have reappeared after cross-border businessmen obtained the fakes on the mainland and deposited them with SAR banks, according to police. Chief superintendent of the Commercial Crime Bureau Vincent Wong Fook-chuen said 300 fake HK$1,000 notes had been found so far this year, compared with a total of 587 last year. Singaporean men struggle in recession Recession-hit Singapore has seen a dramatic surge in the number of older men seeking support from confidential help lines as they struggle to cope with the loss of jobs and greater economic uncertainty. The number of men over 40 calling Samaritan help lines in the city-state rose by 83 per cent in the 12 months to March, the group said in its annual report. Ho pledges money for bridge project Tycoon Stanley Ho Hung-sun has pledged a personal investment in the proposed HK$15 billion bridge linking Hong Kong to Zhuhai and Macau. His commitment to the project came after Hopewell Holdings chairman Sir Gordon Wu Ying-sheung announced last week that he would seek private funding for the bridge, for which he has long lobbied. Worries for SAR cruise-liner market Hong Kong risks losing the lucrative cruise-liner market to regional competitors unless the government moves quickly to build more berths, a study commissioned by the Tourism Board warned. The study claims the economic benefits of the cruise sector to Hong Kong could reach HK$3.3 billion by 2010 - provided another two berths are constructed to accommodate more ocean liners. Hong Kong has just two cruise berths, at Ocean Terminal in Tsim Sha Tsui. Iraqi strikes hit world markets The biggest United States-British air strike on Iraq in four years sent world markets into a spin on Friday, as President George W. Bush accelerated his diplomatic push to win support for war with Baghdad. About 100 US and British aircraft took part in Thursday's attack on a major air defence installation. Financial markets read the air strike as evidence that conflict with Iraq was inevitable. The US dollar dipped, while US crude oil prices rose by more than 3 per cent to a near 12-month high. Iraq has the second-largest oil reserves in the world behind Saudi Arabia. Asian airline stocks led much of the region down. In Hong Hong, Cathay Pacific, China Eastern and China Southern were sent spiralling lower as investors, fearful of higher jet fuel prices and disrupted global economic activity, cashed out. Graphic: WAVE08gwz
