Greater Bay Area

Hi-tech hub would be one of a handful of mainland Chinese cities to introduce free schooling for all children.

The Macau government plans to amend laws to regulate the issuance of a digital currency, Chief Executive Ho Iat-seng told lawmakers on Tuesday, and will work China’s central bank to ‘study the feasibility of issuing a digital currency’.

Developers forked out US$12.59 billion on land in the nine mainland Chinese cities of the future economic hub in the first quarter, up 30 per cent from pre-Covid levels.

Secretary for Justice Teresa Cheng highlights benefits of being involved in Beijing’s 14th five-year plan during online seminar with city’s legal community.

Guangzhou, the provincial capital of Guangdong, is accelerating efforts to spur the development of local cosmetics and skincare industry as demand rebounds and competition from global brands intensifies.

Prices of second-hand homes in the tech hub have risen 88.3 per cent since 2015 – more than any other city in China, according to government data.

Campaigners say complex needed to address facility shortages, but city’s largest pro-establishment party calls for the area to instead be dedicated to fostering collaboration with Shenzhen.

The report, conducted by the think tank 2022 Foundation, outlines seven areas where Hong Kong can take advantage of bay area opportunities.

The mainland Chinese media mogul described business conditions at the city’s dominant free-to-air broadcast network as ‘worrying’ and called for ‘radical reforms’.

Midea Group, Foshan Haitian Flavouring & Food, and a clutch of home-appliances makers help grease the US$164.7 billion economy in Foshan in Guangdong, a southern Chinese province bordering Hong Kong.

Demand from Hongkongers for homes in the Greater Bay Area should see a strong rebound once the border reopens in the second half this year, Centaline’s Andy Lee says

The "Greater Bay Area" refers to the Chinese government's scheme to link the cities of Hong Kong, Macau, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Foshan, Zhongshan, Dongguan, Huizhou, Jiangmen and Zhaoqing into an integrated economic and business hub.

Activists and lawyers say the incident in Guangdong exposes the difficulty many people face in seeking redress from the authorities in land disputes.

Citi saw a 44 per cent increase in net new money in its Hong Kong consumer business in 2020 despite the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.

The Bank of East Asia is looking to extract commission income from cross-selling AIA life policies to its banking clients after divesting its insurance assets. Cross-border wealth management and insurance schemes could be the next big thing, co-CEO Adrian Li says.

The city of Foshan in China’s southern Guangdong province is looking to revitalise kung fu as part of plans to develop its tourism and services sectors.

China’s President Xi Jinping says ‘homes are for people to live in, not for speculation’, but authorities must address institutional structures creating distortions.

Hong Kong property company New World Development expects its investments in China, particularly the Greater Bay Area, will generate double-digit growth over the next several years.

Foshan is offering financing to tech start-ups of up to 20 million yuan in a bid to lure them from neighbouring Greater Bay Area cities.

The new hub is expected to provide a boost to less developed cities in the bay area, but a clear strategy is needed to avoid uneven competition, analysts say.

To address Hong Kong’s yawning inequalities and lagging competitiveness, we need leaders who can competently reconcile Hongkongers’ interests with those of China as it continues to rise.

Patrick Li also said he would ask programme staff to submit plans ahead of production to make sure station’s governing charter was being strictly observed.

Allianz Group’s digital investment unit has acquired an undisclosed stake in WeLab, Hong Kong’s home-grown fintech unicorn, for US$75 million, as it eyes opportunities in the Greater Bay Area.

Standard Chartered will add people and resources in the bay area as it attempts to tap business from the soon-to-be launched wealth management connect scheme, says the chief executive for the zone.

The proposal by Wong, the top executive of the largest of Hong Kong’s three currency issuers, underscores how the GBA could present a viable option for the city’s youth, where the unemployment rate had jumped to a 17-year high of 7 per cent.

Shanghai, Hangzhou and Shenzhen imposed new market curbs on Wednesday, including a ban on flipping homes for a quick profit and more stringent qualification criteria for first-time buyers.

Dane Cheng, of Hong Kong Tourism Board, says the pandemic is not likely to go away this year, though vaccination can ease the outbreaks.

Arrangement will follow the model already in place at Shenzhen Bay, and will remove the requirement for passengers to clear two checkpoints.

Wang Zhigang says country will put semiconductors among its research and development priorities.