https://www.scmp.com/rss/507567/feed Latest news and updates about discussions to create travel bubbles between Hong Kong and destinations where residents have been vaccinated, which would allow possible exemptions from quarantine. Hong Kong and Singapore agreed in principle to form a travel bubble late last year but it was postponed. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Hong Kong has further eased its quarantine and isolation measures following mainland China’s major shift away from its zero-Covid policy, but a continuing surge in daily infections is keeping the city from lifting social-distancing rules over the coming holiday season. From Friday, residents and arrivals infected with Covid-19 will be allowed to leave... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3202486/coronavirus-hong-kong-ease-isolation-rules-infected-travellers-release-fifth-day-instead-seventh?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3202486/coronavirus-hong-kong-ease-isolation-rules-infected-travellers-release-fifth-day-instead-seventh?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 08 Dec 2022 03:14:49 +0000 Group tour members who visit Hong Kong for fewer than four days will only need to undergo one polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test at the airport from Saturday amid a further easing of rules to attract inbound travellers. The new arrangements for inbound travellers accompanied by licensed tour guides were revealed on Friday after the city’s authorities ironed out the details with the tourism sector, confirming an earlier Post report. The city on Friday recorded 8,008 new Covid-19 infections,... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3200115/coronavirus-group-tour-visitors-staying-hong-kong-fewer-4-days-will-only-need-1-pcr-test?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3200115/coronavirus-group-tour-visitors-staying-hong-kong-fewer-4-days-will-only-need-1-pcr-test?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 18 Nov 2022 08:45:38 +0000 The cruise industry is sailing in troubled waters. Many operators are struggling to stay afloat in business after the fluctuating global pandemic forced ports to shut down. Thankfully, more countries have reopened for tourism recently, giving the ailing sector and its 1.8 million employees worldwide a much-needed lifeline. Hong Kong is stubbornly resisting full relaxation of its Covid restrictions. This is partly due to a lingering fifth wave of infections that still sees thousands of new cases... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3189408/calmer-waters-return-hong-kong-cruise-ships?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3189408/calmer-waters-return-hong-kong-cruise-ships?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 18 Aug 2022 23:30:14 +0000 Hong Kong districts with shrinking student populations have registered the biggest declines in home rents since the coronavirus pandemic broke out in early 2020, according to property agency data, suggesting that a wave of emigration is profoundly impacting the property market. Home rents fell the most in the eastern and southern districts of Hong Kong Island and the Wong Tai Sin area of Kowloon, according to data on average transacted rents compiled by Midland Realty. These are the same areas... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3185763/school-district-home-rents-drop-most-two-years-more-hong-kong-residents?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3185763/school-district-home-rents-drop-most-two-years-more-hong-kong-residents?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 19 Jul 2022 05:00:12 +0000 With much of the world lifting tough Covid-19 travel restrictions, a Hong Kong-based hotelier is filled with a tinge of sadness as operators in Europe and Australia brim with an influx of guests that has pushed room rates back to pre-pandemic levels. After spending five weeks travelling in Italy, France, the UK and Belgium, Girish Jhunjhnuwala, founder and executive chairman of Ovolo Hotels, could not help but feel nostalgic about pre-pandemic times, when Hong Kong was the most visited city in... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3185439/hong-kong-hotelier-hopes-restriction-free-travel-industry-slowly-returns?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3185439/hong-kong-hotelier-hopes-restriction-free-travel-industry-slowly-returns?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 17 Jul 2022 02:00:16 +0000 Known as the “grand old dame”, The Peninsula Hong Kong has withstood several tumultuous periods throughout its more than 90-year history. But the Covid-19 pandemic is the toughest challenge the iconic hotel and its operator have faced yet, a top executive said. The past two years have been tough for Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels (HSH), which currently owns and operates 10 Peninsula hotels in Asia, the United States and Europe. The company reported losses of HK$1.94 billion (US$248 million) in... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3171053/peninsula-has-been-through-sars-and-asian-financial-crisis-covid-19-among?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3171053/peninsula-has-been-through-sars-and-asian-financial-crisis-covid-19-among?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 20 Mar 2022 02:00:21 +0000 When the history of Hong Kong’s battle against Covid-19 is written, yesterday’s revelation that the government is to subject its strategy to a “midterm review” might prove to be a pivotal point. Core features of the city’s policy, including flight bans, school suspensions, quarantine rules and a planned mass testing exercise, are all to be reconsidered. A change of direction or, at least, a reconfiguration of the strategy, could be on the way. Much will depend on the results of the review, due... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3170900/coronavirus-review-has-offer-suffering-hong-kong-hope?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3170900/coronavirus-review-has-offer-suffering-hong-kong-hope?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 18 Mar 2022 00:30:18 +0000 Feel strongly about these letters, or any other aspects of the news? Share your views by emailing us your Letter to the Editor at letters@scmp.com or filling in this Google form. Submissions should not exceed 400 words, and must include your full name and address, plus a phone number for verification. Meetings of the private hospitals association have been occurring almost daily since the start of the Covid-19 fifth wave. Those involved could have agreed for private hospitals to cease routine... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3168991/amid-covid-19-fifth-wave-hong-kongs-private-hospitals-must-step?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3168991/amid-covid-19-fifth-wave-hong-kongs-private-hospitals-must-step?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 05 Mar 2022 03:30:18 +0000 As Stacie Yang drew up plans to celebrate her 30th birthday due at the end of February, her options were quickly vanishing with Hong Kong’s explosive growth in Covid-19 cases. Spa sessions, a karaoke rendezvous, and manicures were out, as city authorities shut close-contact services to contain the spread of the Omicron variant of the Covid-19 virus. Even dinners were out of the question as indoor dining was banned after 6pm. Exasperated, Yang booked a deluxe room at the Rosewood Hotel in Tsim... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3167589/hong-kong-coronavirus-will-omicron-surge-turn-half-empty-hotels-quarantine?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3167589/hong-kong-coronavirus-will-omicron-surge-turn-half-empty-hotels-quarantine?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 19 Feb 2022 02:00:19 +0000 How out of touch with citizens are Hong Kong officials? If they had been the slightest bit aware of how important the daily dim sum ritual is for many elderly people, the city’s Covid-19 vaccination rate would, in all likelihood, have attained herd immunity months ago. As it is, only now, with a scheme requiring proof of inoculation having been announced, are retirees finally rushing to get jabbed. Let’s set aside the dozens of officials and legislators who, in the midst of the city’s first... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/hong-kong/article/3162681/who-knew-dim-sum-ban-was-all-it-would-take-get-our?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/hong-kong/article/3162681/who-knew-dim-sum-ban-was-all-it-would-take-get-our?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 10 Jan 2022 22:45:18 +0000 As we enter our third year in the grim grip of the Covid-19 pandemic, I’ve tried to cheer myself up periodically by looking for positives in Hong Kong’s zero-Covid approach to the pandemic. And positives are not hard to find. The city has seen only 12,732 infections and 213 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic. Singapore, a city state with less than 75 per cent of Hong Kong’s population, has seen over 283,000 infections and 835 deaths. Unfortunately, on most days, the positives are crowded... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3162475/omicrons-emergence-catalyst-hong-kong-rethink-its-zero-covid?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3162475/omicrons-emergence-catalyst-hong-kong-rethink-its-zero-covid?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 07 Jan 2022 05:30:15 +0000 The stringent approach of many Asian cities to shutting out Covid-19 may have kept case numbers in check and taken some pressure off local economies. But it has done nothing for their global standing as tourism destinations. Asian cities are nowhere to be seen in the top 10 of an index ranking the world’s best destinations. Paris and other European cities dominate the list compiled by Euromonitor International, owing to their more relaxed travel policies amid the pandemic. The Top 100 City... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3158304/hong-kong-other-asian-cities-shut-out-worlds-top-10-tourist-destinations?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3158304/hong-kong-other-asian-cities-shut-out-worlds-top-10-tourist-destinations?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 05 Dec 2021 01:30:15 +0000 There are no safe loopholes in a Covid-19 zero-tolerance policy. Evidence of this is to be found in hundreds of people being sent into quarantine at Penny’s Bay, a school closure and mass testing. This was after two Cathay Pacific cargo pilots, including one with a teacher-wife and two children at Discovery Bay International School, returned from Frankfurt testing positive for a strain of the Delta variant. The incident should prompt sympathy for everyone involved. But it also warrants some... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3156162/more-clarity-needed-hong-kong-pilots-and-aircrew?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3156162/more-clarity-needed-hong-kong-pilots-and-aircrew?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 16 Nov 2021 00:00:21 +0000 International financial firms have urged Hong Kong to ease its zero-Covid approach, as the government’s data showed that only one in five applicants were exempted from a tough quarantine rule since a waiver programme kicked off five months ago. The exemption scheme had not operated as expected, with only 86 approvals granted as of October 22, out of 385 applications received, according to data provided by the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau (FSTB) in response to a query by South... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3153605/global-banks-pressure-hong-kong-abandon-zero-covid-policy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3153605/global-banks-pressure-hong-kong-abandon-zero-covid-policy?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 25 Oct 2021 09:46:59 +0000 It seems it is Hong Kong’s fate to always be compared with Shanghai to the north, and Singapore to the south. Looking north, Shanghai is larger and more deeply embedded in the nation’s political and social fabric. Hong Kong has the freedom of manoeuvre that distance and a separate constitutional arrangement can bring. Looking south, Singapore as a sovereign country is autonomous so can be more decisive and bold, but it lacks a proper hinterland. Hong Kong has to keep in mind national priorities... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3152489/unlike-singapore-hong-kong-might-be-stuck-zero-covid-even-if-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3152489/unlike-singapore-hong-kong-might-be-stuck-zero-covid-even-if-it?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 17 Oct 2021 06:39:06 +0000 Focusing on reopening the border with mainland China, as Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor said in her policy address, may look like the sensible thing to do for Hong Kong but it is not. Although Hong Kong is best in class in keeping Covid-19 infections at (almost) zero, this is still not enough to open the border with mainland China for at least another four to five months. And even when the border opens, the conditions for travel, probably including a tracing app, may not be... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3152376/hong-kong-should-open-quarantine-free-travel-world-first-instead?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3152376/hong-kong-should-open-quarantine-free-travel-world-first-instead?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 Oct 2021 23:30:22 +0000 Hong Kong may need to follow in Macau’s footsteps and set up a suspension mechanism for quarantine-free travel with mainland China when the border fully reopens, a government pandemic adviser has said, meaning just one local Covid-19 case could trigger the measure. But some other health experts said Hong Kong could adopt a more relaxed rule given its higher flow of international travellers, and suspend quarantine-free arrangements only when there were signs of community transmission. Chief... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3151982/coronavirus-hong-kong-may-need-adopt-macaus?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3151982/coronavirus-hong-kong-may-need-adopt-macaus?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 Oct 2021 14:24:05 +0000 Much has been written on travel bubbles, rapid antigen tests and vaccine passports. The English language has been greatly enriched by terms such as PCR and PPE, both among the latest acronyms now resolutely lodged in our vocabulary. These acronyms spoon-feed science to us in bite-sized morsels. They make travellers sound like they know what they are talking about, hence the hasty adoption into living room conversation. PCR sounds so much better than polymerase chain reaction test. Few understand... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3148978/pandemics-persistence-means-carefree-holidays-abroad-wont-be?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3148978/pandemics-persistence-means-carefree-holidays-abroad-wont-be?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 17 Sep 2021 06:30:18 +0000 Hong Kong has marked another milestone with no local Covid-19 infections for more than 21 days. The question is when will quarantine-free travel be able to resume? While the way forward remains unclear at this stage, the government has proposed medical experts from the city meet with mainland counterparts to hammer out conditions for the gradual reopening of the border. Hopefully, this will pave the way for a clear road map regarding travel. Public impatience was reflected in the Legislative... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3148067/cross-border-steps-right-direction-coronavirus-experts-need-talk?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3148067/cross-border-steps-right-direction-coronavirus-experts-need-talk?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Sep 2021 19:47:14 +0000 The operator behind Hong Kong’s “cruises to nowhere” is seeking negotiations with the government to lift Covid-19 curbs on capacity after receiving an overwhelming response from the public in its first month of voyages. Kent Zhu Fuming, president of Genting Cruise Lines, told the Post he was planning to submit a proposal to the government in two weeks on easing restrictions, insisting that the company’s “seacation” product provided a lifeline for the battered tourism industry. Zhu said since the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3147214/operator-hong-kongs-cruises-nowhere-lobby-higher?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3147214/operator-hong-kongs-cruises-nowhere-lobby-higher?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Sep 2021 00:00:34 +0000 There was a time when the most pressing issue upon returning to Hong Kong was whether to take the Airport Express or brave an epic wait for a taxi. Current travellers juggle unimaginable costs, constant changes in entry requirements, emotional heartbreak and the solitary confinement of a 21-day quarantine. For those attempting to return from countries including the United States, France, UAE, Thailand and Malaysia, things took a dramatic turn on August 16. “The government has decided to upgrade... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3146597/travellers-stranded-overseas-and-trying-return-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3146597/travellers-stranded-overseas-and-trying-return-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 29 Aug 2021 04:15:11 +0000 Hong Kong is “no longer in travel talks” with other places because of differences in approach to containing Covid-19, the city’s health minister has revealed. Sophia Chan Siu-chee on Saturday said the government was still aiming to strike a balance between residents’ expectation of “zero infections”, while avoiding becoming “completely cut off” from the outside world. The long-awaited travel bubble with Singapore was ditched for good on Thursday, after the city state moved towards a policy of... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3145883/coronavirus-hong-kong-no-longer-travel-bubble?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3145883/coronavirus-hong-kong-no-longer-travel-bubble?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Aug 2021 06:14:50 +0000 Hong Kong revealed on Thursday that a joint decision with Singapore to drop all plans for a much-anticipated travel bubble was based on their differing approaches to the Covid-19 pandemic, a development that tourism figures said reflected the increasing challenges of striking such deals. But the city state will begin admitting short-term visitors from Hong Kong and Macau without requiring them to quarantine starting on August 26, despite the measure not being reciprocated. Singapore citizens,... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3145691/hong-kong-singapore-travel-bubble-differing-covid?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3145691/hong-kong-singapore-travel-bubble-differing-covid?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Aug 2021 13:46:34 +0000 The return of more stringent travel restrictions in Hong Kong is likely to weigh on the city’s battered hotels sector, which is expected to record among the slowest recoveries in Asia, analysts said. In a U-turn on Monday, the Hong Kong government ended what could be the world’s shortest relaxation of quarantine rules and put the United States and 14 other countries in a high-risk category for Covid-19. Arrivals from these countries will now be required to undergo a 21-day quarantine, rising... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3145321/hong-kong-quarantine-u-turn-sucker-punch-battered-hotels-sector?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3145321/hong-kong-quarantine-u-turn-sucker-punch-battered-hotels-sector?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Aug 2021 00:30:16 +0000 Hong Kong’s National Security Law (NSL) has not resulted in Japanese companies reducing their presence in the Asian financial hub, even though restrictions on information, rule of law and judicial independence remain concerns for these businesses, according to Japan’s outgoing consul general to Hong Kong. However, Mitsuhiro Wada noted that Covid-19 border restrictions with mainland China and other countries had forced some Japanese firms based in Hong Kong to downsize. Others had moved their... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3145042/outgoing-japan-envoy-hong-kong-calls-easing-greater-bay-area?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3145042/outgoing-japan-envoy-hong-kong-calls-easing-greater-bay-area?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Aug 2021 04:00:19 +0000 Whether politics has any place in international sports events has been a controversy for decades. Many politicians argue that in the interest of athletes and harmony between all nations, sports must be kept out of politics. Some even contend that sports has nothing to do with politics. These assertions seem very plausible but are unrealistic upon deeper scrutiny, especially when we turn to history. Adolf Hitler, the German dictator and fascist, wanted to use the 1936 Berlin Olympics to bolster... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3144430/olympic-history-shows-sports-and-politics-are-intertwined-athletes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3144430/olympic-history-shows-sports-and-politics-are-intertwined-athletes?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 Aug 2021 23:00:23 +0000 The broad lines of analysis of the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) on how zero-Covid policies are starting to bite back on the success stories can also be applied to China, though the intricacies are naturally far more complex. Of the places named in the EIU study, only Singapore has achieved significant vaccination. One would look forward to how Singapore more concretely outlines the “live with Covid” vision after this current wave of outbreaks is contained and the delayed National Day... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3143204/coronavirus-why-hong-kong-offers-best-test-run-china-open-after?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3143204/coronavirus-why-hong-kong-offers-best-test-run-china-open-after?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Aug 2021 22:35:12 +0000 More than 1,000 Hongkongers set off on Friday night aboard the city’s first-ever “cruise to nowhere”, with a top official hailing the high-seas jaunt as a step towards “bringing back normality”. Some passengers were so keen to travel again that one claimed he went ahead with Covid-19 vaccination – a requirement for all on board – even though he had long-term illnesses. Other excited guests were seen boarding the vessel hours before its departure. Commerce minister Edward Yau Tang-wah earlier... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3143148/coronavirus-hong-kong-first-ever-cruise-nowhere?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3143148/coronavirus-hong-kong-first-ever-cruise-nowhere?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 30 Jul 2021 06:19:19 +0000 Fresh lockdowns and restrictions in Asia brought on by the faster-spreading Delta coronavirus variant are making the region’s pursuit of travel bubbles look like an increasingly fruitless endeavour. Air travel bubbles, corridors that allow movement between countries without the need for quarantine, have largely been a letdown as nations pull up the drawbridge again to contain outbreaks. A travel link between Singapore and Hong Kong, first mooted last year, has never actually opened. Meanwhile,... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3142198/asias-planned-travel-bubbles-burst-delta-variant-some?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3142198/asias-planned-travel-bubbles-burst-delta-variant-some?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 23 Jul 2021 04:15:23 +0000 The much-delayed travel bubble between Hong Kong and Singapore will be subject to further review in late August as conditions for launching the quarantine-free arrangement are still unsuitable. A Hong Kong government spokesman said on Tuesday that the two sides were reviewing the pandemic situation, highlighting the recent surge in Covid-19 infections in the city state. “The condition for launching the air travel bubble cannot be met for the time being,” he said. “Both sides agreed that a review... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3141813/singapore-hong-kong-travel-bubble-late-august?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3141813/singapore-hong-kong-travel-bubble-late-august?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 20 Jul 2021 09:00:04 +0000 I would like to express my clear disappointment with local legislators’ knee-jerk reaction to Singaporean ministers talking about “living with Covid”, which occupied much media space on Saturday. I am sure our legislators have not tried to carefully glean information about the actual Covid-19 situation in Singapore. First of all, social-distancing measures there right now are overall sterner than in Hong Kong. Second, the vaccination rate in Singapore is far higher – people who have received a... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3141173/singapore-bubble-dont-slam-living-covid-raise-hong-kong-vaccines?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3141173/singapore-bubble-dont-slam-living-covid-raise-hong-kong-vaccines?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 15 Jul 2021 22:50:16 +0000 Asian air travel may take another three years to recover fully from the devastation wrought by the pandemic, lagging behind rebounds in other regions and offering a stern headwind for refiners making jet fuel. It will take until 2024 for international air travel across the region to reach pre-virus levels, a year after global traffic hits that milestone, according to the International Air Transport Association. Similarly, consultancy Energy Aspects says jet fuel consumption will reach... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3141168/asian-air-travel-could-take-three-years-recover-coronavirus?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3141168/asian-air-travel-could-take-three-years-recover-coronavirus?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 15 Jul 2021 02:54:51 +0000 Hong Kong’s leader has proposed a new quota system for quarantine-free business travel with mainland China for those who are vaccinated as part of efforts to lobby Beijing to reopen the border, according to sources. Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor had highlighted the city’s vaccination drive and its progress in reining in Covid-19 infections in her proposal, the insiders said, but there had been no response so far to the bid. The revival of cross-border travel – with the mainland... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3140969/china-or-singapore-hong-kongs-leader-keen?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3140969/china-or-singapore-hong-kongs-leader-keen?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 13 Jul 2021 23:30:20 +0000 Negotiations between Hong Kong and Singapore over their much-delayed travel bubble are being hobbled by disagreements over antibody tests and vaccination rules against Covid-19, the Post has learned. Sources familiar with the discussions on Tuesday said it was proposed that a unilateral decision by Hong Kong to require all of its residents to have had two doses of a Covid-19 vaccine at least a fortnight before departure be extended to Singaporeans. Under the bubble, travellers from both cities... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3140989/travel-bubble-trouble-hong-kong-singapore-talks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3140989/travel-bubble-trouble-hong-kong-singapore-talks?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 13 Jul 2021 14:18:31 +0000 Hong Kong should scrap plans for the long-awaited travel bubble with Singapore given the city state’s recent strategy shift to “live” with Covid-19, lawmakers have said. The high-profile calls by pro-establishment legislators in a Legislative Council meeting on Friday to ditch the quarantine-free travel arrangement, which had already suffered two delays due to the pandemic situation in both places, came as Hong Kong’s health minister confirmed BioNTech jabs would continue to be available to... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3140498/coronavirus-scrap-travel-bubble-plans-singapore?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3140498/coronavirus-scrap-travel-bubble-plans-singapore?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 09 Jul 2021 08:41:34 +0000 Hong Kong will look into how a change in Singapore’s strategy for tackling the coronavirus may affect the quarantine-free travel bubble between the two destinations, and whether a vaccination requirement should be extended to visitors from the city state as a result, the chief executive has said. City leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor on Tuesday said Singapore was still the government’s top candidate for a bilateral travel corridor, which she pledged to finally launch – after two previous failed... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3140046/singapores-plans-reopening-could-complicate-long?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3140046/singapores-plans-reopening-could-complicate-long?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 06 Jul 2021 11:04:27 +0000 The ever-evolving Covid-19 pandemic poses a quandary to governments wanting to reopen economies to the world. New strains that make the disease more dangerous or virulent require a rethink of strategies. Hong Kong, several times on the verge of a travel bubble with Singapore and in talks with the mainland and Macau, should be patient and not get its hopes overly high. Ultimately, it is only when vaccination takes hold and herd immunity has been attained that we should expect freedom to go where... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3139909/resumption-travel-hinges-reaching-herd-immunity?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3139909/resumption-travel-hinges-reaching-herd-immunity?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Jul 2021 12:47:04 +0000 Health officials have reclassified a hotel cleaner’s coronavirus infection as linked to an imported one, meaning Hong Kong’s run of zero local Covid-19 cases, now at 28 days, remains intact. The city confirmed just one imported Covid-19 infection on Monday, an arrival from Britain, while a local health expert warned that a plan by Singapore to shift away from a zero-case strategy could leave Hong Kong exposed to a higher risk of variant strains when its long-awaited travel bubble with the city... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3139829/coronavirus-singapore-moves-towards-new-normal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3139829/coronavirus-singapore-moves-towards-new-normal?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Jul 2021 04:57:10 +0000 The aim of having a Covid-free Hong Kong is just not, nor will it ever be, possible. We seem to have so many “experts” here in Hong Kong that advise the government on how to achieve this Utopian dream of a Covid-free Hong Kong and the government seems happy to follow the advice. Unfortunately some of the basics seem to have largely been forgotten. We will never be 100 per cent free of Covid in the near term. What we have to do is adjust and accept that fact (“‘Covid-19 may never go away’:... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3139415/forget-zero-covid-let-hong-kong-learn-live-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3139415/forget-zero-covid-let-hong-kong-learn-live-it?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 01 Jul 2021 22:30:23 +0000 Having suffered one of the most devastating economic downturns that has lasted for almost a year and a half, local restaurants are seeing some light at the end of the tunnel. The relaxation of seating capacity and other arrangements in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, though, may be of little comfort to the many who are still struggling. Nonetheless, it gives caterers a glimmer of hope for a long-awaited restart. Unfortunately, that is not the case for food truck operators. If the recent... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3139225/save-hong-kong-food-trucks-rethink-strategy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3139225/save-hong-kong-food-trucks-rethink-strategy?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 29 Jun 2021 14:55:54 +0000 Before the Covid-19 pandemic forced countries to close their borders, Peggy Chung was a frequent traveller. The 52-year-old Hong Kong-based food merchant travelled within Asia regularly and sometimes to Europe and South America to meet clients. While the pandemic has not had a seismic impact on her business, her life is not as exciting as it used to be. “[It has been] very boring,” Chung said. “I used to have fun meeting my clients, but now I’m just stuck at home.” A number of digital health... https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3138821/digital-vaccine-passports-how-blockchain-and-qr-codes-can-revive?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3138821/digital-vaccine-passports-how-blockchain-and-qr-codes-can-revive?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 27 Jun 2021 23:00:09 +0000 A plan by Hong Kong’s government to further ease Covid-19 restrictions based mostly on vaccination status has received a lukewarm response from hard-hit business operators, with some dismissing the changes as too conservative and too late. While the commerce sector welcomed another flagship policy on Monday to halve quarantine lengths for fully vaccinated travellers testing positive for antibodies, the hospitality industry voiced worries of losses if guests were allowed to leave isolation... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3138220/coronavirus-hong-kong-businesses-say-easing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3138220/coronavirus-hong-kong-businesses-say-easing?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 21 Jun 2021 14:34:56 +0000 Singapore pips Hong Kong in quarantine facilities for visitors and returnees, an advantage that gives the city state the edge in resuming business travels to kick start the local economy. One in every four Singapore hotels is usable as a facility for so-called stay-home notices (SHN), compared with one in 10 in Hong Kong, according to tourism and government officials of both cities. In absolute terms, Singapore’s SHN facilities are more than double the number of Hong Kong’s quarantine venues,... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3137855/coronavirus-quarantine-singapore-pips-hong-kong-quantity-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3137855/coronavirus-quarantine-singapore-pips-hong-kong-quantity-and?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 20 Jun 2021 03:30:00 +0000 It may take weeks before the first fully vaccinated business travellers are allowed to travel to Hong Kong and avoid the city’s restrictive quarantine requirements, as government officials iron out the logistics of the expanded quarantine exemption scheme. Hundreds of waiver applications by senior executives at banks, insurers, fund managers and the city’s biggest listed companies have been filed, according to people familiar with the matter. The exemptions are not on hold, one person said. It... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3137519/quarantine-waiver-hong-kong-will-need-weeks-process?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3137519/quarantine-waiver-hong-kong-will-need-weeks-process?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 16 Jun 2021 09:34:41 +0000 Thailand’s plan to reopen the tourist haven of Phuket could become a model for other holiday hotspots in Asia to prise open their borders and bring in visitors as strategies such as travel bubbles falter, according to the founder of Banyan Tree Holdings. Tourism-reliant Thailand aims to allow quarantine-free travel to its prime destination from July 1 for the first time in more than a year, provided visitors are inoculated against Covid-19 and aren’t coming from high-risk countries. The... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3137462/coronavirus-thailands-phuket-reopening-plan-holds-model?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3137462/coronavirus-thailands-phuket-reopening-plan-holds-model?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 16 Jun 2021 04:29:53 +0000 Hong Kong and Singapore will review plans for a long-awaited travel bubble early next month, and despite the city state making progress in taming a resurgence of Covid-19 cases, both governments say they will proceed cautiously towards launching the quarantine-free scheme. Hong Kong commerce chief Edward Yau Tang-wah had been regularly in touch with his counterpart in the city state, a government spokesman said on Thursday, adding that both administrations were closely monitoring the Covid-19... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/transport/article/3136779/hong-kong-singapore-travel-bubble-early-july-review-set?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/transport/article/3136779/hong-kong-singapore-travel-bubble-early-july-review-set?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 10 Jun 2021 09:10:12 +0000 Hongkongers vaccinated against Covid-19 can travel to Phuket from July 2 without having to quarantine on arrival, but local industry players have said the offer will attract muted enthusiasm amid remaining hurdles. Stakeholders poured cold water on Thailand’s move to woo Hong Kong tourists, pointing out that those returning to the city would still need to undergo two weeks’ quarantine at hotels, with no existing travel bubble deal between the two governments. Confirming a previous Post report,... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3136707/coronavirus-lack-travel-bubble-thailands-high-risk?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3136707/coronavirus-lack-travel-bubble-thailands-high-risk?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 10 Jun 2021 02:15:00 +0000 Booking a hotel room for quarantine at peak season can be a headache, even more so in a city known for some of the strictest Covid-19 restrictions in the world. The situation is further compounded by a mismatch in supply and demand with more people returning from overseas in the summer. Many are being forced to delay their trips or pay through the nose as a result. The need for more proactive government intervention is obvious. If the official occupancy rate is any guide, designated quarantine... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3136705/hong-kong-rooms-should-suit-all-quarantine-budgets?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3136705/hong-kong-rooms-should-suit-all-quarantine-budgets?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 09 Jun 2021 15:26:09 +0000 The Hong Kong government has extended the drawdown period of the HK$7.8 billion (US$1 billion) rescue loan facility it extended to Cathay Pacific, giving the embattled airline another year to access the funds if needed. The bridging loan facility was part of the airline’s HK$39 billion recapitalisation package, which also included a HK$11.7 billion rights issue to shareholders and a government subscription to its preference shares totalling HK$19.5 billion. The aim was to keep the airline afloat... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3136477/cathay-pacific-given-extra-year-tap-hong-kong-governments?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3136477/cathay-pacific-given-extra-year-tap-hong-kong-governments?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 08 Jun 2021 09:00:12 +0000 Hong Kong ended a 38-day streak of zero local untraceable cases as a police officer was confirmed to be infected with Covid-19 on Tuesday, dampening hopes that the city had finally put a lid on its fourth wave of the pandemic. The setback came as a health expert advising the government on the pandemic said vaccinated senior business executives exempted from quarantine upon arriving in the city should still be made to take extra antibody tests, and the exemption should also apply to others seen... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3135622/coronavirus-hong-kongs-38-day-streak-zero-local?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3135622/coronavirus-hong-kongs-38-day-streak-zero-local?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 01 Jun 2021 08:58:10 +0000