Hong Kong Housing Authority expects to record HK$8 billion surplus next financial year, with outlook ‘healthy’ in spite of dip
- The predicted surplus would represent a 40 per cent decline from the current period, owing to unsold units
- The authority’s chairman has also said more pandemic-related rental relief could be in the works
The Housing Authority explained that some previously built flats may not sell until the next financial year, meaning the income would not be reflected in the 2021-22 period.
The authority is also projecting a dip in its longer-term cash and investment balance, which is predicted to fall from about HK$55.9 billion at the start of April 2020 to HK$49.9 billion by the end of March 2025.
Despite the decline, Professor Chan Ka-lok, chairman of the authority’s finance committee, said at a press conference on Friday that the Housing Authority’s finances for the next five years were stable and sufficient to meet daily operating and construction expenses.
“I think that drop is modest, but also reflecting that there will be an increase in construction expenditures as we cope with the need to meet our housing target,” he said. “I think it is still healthy from the perspective of our overall budget.”
Chan said Covid-19 rent waivers, which meant less income in both financial years, were reflected in the budget, but had not had a big impact on the authority’s finances.