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Arrivals from mainland China cross the border at Shenzhen Bay Port in September. Photo: K. Y. Chen

Coronavirus: no light at end of the tunnel, say business groups as Hong Kong changes Covid-19 quarantine rules

  • Even after city moves to meet Beijing’s conditions for reopening border, firms still frustrated that long-awaited easing has yet to happen
  • Opportunities to find new partners or foster greater collaboration is getting harder, which could threaten growth, says one restaurant industry leader

Companies in Hong Kong remain deeply pessimistic over the prospect that cross-border business will improve any time soon, despite the city’s success in battling Covid-19 and government’s latest move to meet Beijing’s conditions for reopening.

The American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong also expressed doubts the financial hub would move towards full restoration of international travel within the near future and warned the impact on firms could be larger than people expected.

Business groups were responding to Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor’s announcement on Tuesday to end quarantine exemption privileges for most people in categories once identified as crucial for maintaining daily operations, as part of stepped-up efforts to convince Beijing to reopen travel over the border with mainland China. She added that more details would be unveiled.

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A monthly average of about 38,000 people were exempted from quarantine in the first seven months of this year, according to the Department of Health. Most of them are truck drivers transporting goods.

Lam has repeatedly said the city’s priority is torestore cross-border travel with the mainland, its biggest market for business and source of tourists.

The government currently grants quarantine exemption to 36 groups of people deemed crucial for the economy and everyday operations. They include government officials, directors of listed companies, diplomats, cross-border truck drivers, aircrew and experts who are engaged in Covid-19 research for the government.

Hong Kong has one of the strictest quarantine policies in the world, but its chief secretary, the city’s No 2 official, has the power to grant exemptions.

The city has kept Covid-19 infections and deaths to a minimum but struggled to resume international travel as local authorities aim to align the rules with those of the mainland’s strict zero-Covid approach.

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The hardline approach has irked global and cross-border business communities, with travel to and from the city having come to a standstill for 20 months and no plans to reopen in sight.

Simon Wong Ka-wo, president of the Federation of Restaurants and Related Trades, said the prolonged closures had affected many manufacturing businesses, especially for its members who used to cross the border for product sourcing and quality testing.

“Cross-border business can still somehow manage with online meetings, but opportunities to find new partners or have more collaboration is getting harder and this could lead to stagnant growth,” he said.

Wong pointed out that under the earlier regime only high-ranking listed-company directors were exempted from quarantine so many businesspeople still had to meet the isolation requirements.

“It just shows that the border reopening won’t come any time soon,” he said.

Lee Cheuk-sun, convenor of the Hong Kong Travel Professional Union, said his organisation would submit policy suggestions to the government, with the aim of resuming some form of travel.

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The union bemoaned that despite nearly 70 per cent of the city’s eligible population being fully vaccinated, the government had not shown any interest in discussing reopening leisure travel with the mainland.

“We can’t see the light at the end of this never-ending tunnel,” said Lee, who heads the union made up of cross-border drivers and tour guides.

The government’s move to scrap quarantine exemptions was another example of constantly shifting goalposts, he said.

Allen Shi Lop-tak, president of the Chinese Manufacturers’ Association of Hong Kong, said the business group would continue talking with the government about how best to keep the sector operating despite the border closures.

“Many small to medium-sized businesses have been battered by the pandemic, so we will continue to reflect our concerns and suggestions to the government,” Shi said on Tuesday.

The business association previously suggested the government set up a “commercial bubble” across the bay area and allow up to 500 fully vaccinated business travellers a day to have point-to-point transport between their factories or offices across the border.

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Border trade future grim, companies say
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