Mainly attributed to the stronger-than-usual subtropical ridge over southern China, the weather of May 2025 was drier than usual in Hong Kong. The total rainfall in the month was 81.6 millimetres, only about 28 per cent of the normal of 290.6 millimetres. The accumulated rainfall recorded in the first five months of the year was 207.1 millimetres, about 35 per cent of the normal of 590.9 millimetres for the same period and the eighth lowest on record for the same period. Moreover, the month was hotter than usual. The monthly mean minimum temperature of 25.5 degrees, monthly mean maximum temperature of 30.0 degrees and monthly mean temperature of 27.2 degrees were 1.0 degrees, 1.2 degrees and 0.9 degrees above their corresponding normals and were respectively one of the eighth, the ninth and the 10th highest on record for May. The spring of this year from March to May was also warmer than usual. The mean maximum temperature of 26.7 degrees and mean temperature of 23.7 degrees were respectively one of the fifth and one of the eighth highest on record for the same period.

     The weather in Hong Kong was mainly cloudy with a few showers on the first day of the month and turned fine the next day. Affected by a band of clouds, the weather became mainly cloudy again with a few showers in some areas on May 3 and 4. With light winds over the coast of Guangdong, local visibility was also relatively low on the first four days of the month with coastal fog on the mornings of May 3 and 4. While there were sunny intervals during the day on May 5, a trough of low pressure over inland Guangdong moved southwards gradually and brought a few showers and isolated thunderstorms to Hong Kong that night and the next day. More than 10 millimetres of rainfall were recorded over the northern part of the New Territories on the afternoon of May 6. The trough of low pressure continued to bring thundery showers to the vicinity of the Pearl River Estuary on May 7. Locally, it was cloudy with occasional showers and a few thunderstorms. Showers were heavy at times. More than 30 millimetres of rainfall were recorded over the New Territories, and rainfall even exceeded 70 millimetres over Chek Lap Kok, Tuen Mun, Tsuen Wan, Sha Tin and Tai Po districts.
      
     A fresh to strong easterly airstream affected the coast of Guangdong on May 8. Locally, there were sunny intervals and one or two showers. Around 10 millimetres of rainfall were recorded over Tai Po and Sha Tin Districts. Areas of intense thundery showers associated with a trough of low pressure moved across the vicinity of the Pearl River Estuary the next day. It was mainly cloudy with a few showers. Showers were heavier over some areas during the day with squally thunderstorms. More than 10 millimetres of rainfall were recorded over the eastern part of Hong Kong. A cold front formed over the northern part of southern China on May 10 and moved across the coast of Guangdong the next morning. Locally, it was mainly cloudy on May 10 with a few showers overnight and the next morning. The temperature at the Observatory dropped to a minimum of 21.0 degrees on May 11, the lowest of the month. The associated northeast monsoon brought very dry and generally fine weather that afternoon and the next day, with the relative humidity falling below 40 per cent over many places.
      
     Under the influence of an easterly airstream over the coast of Guangdong, local weather was hot during the day with sunny periods from May 13 to 15. A southerly airstream affected the coast of Guangdong in the following six days. The weather was mainly cloudy with one or two showers on May 16 and turned sunnier and very hot in the following two days. An upper-air disturbance affected the coast of Guangdong on May 19 and 20, bringing a few showers to some areas in Hong Kong. With the departure of the disturbance, the weather became very hot with sunny intervals on May 21.
      
     Under the influence of an anticyclone aloft over the coast of Guangdong and the northern part of the South China Sea, it remained very hot with sunny periods on May 22 and 23. The temperature at the Observatory rose to a maximum of 33.0 degrees on May 22, the highest of the month. With a trough of low pressure moving across the coast of Guangdong overnight on May 23 and 24, its associated showers and thunderstorms affected the territory on the night of May 23 and the next day. More than 20 millimetres of rainfall were recorded over many places on Hong Kong Island on May 24. With a broad band of clouds covering southern China, the weather was mainly cloudy on May 25 and 26. With the band of clouds thinning out, there were sunny periods during the day on May 27. An easterly airstream brought showers to the coast of Guangdong the next day. Locally, showers mainly affected the eastern part of the territory and brought more than 10 millimetres of rainfall to Sai Kung, Tseung Kwan O and the eastern part of Hong Kong Island. Meanwhile, a trough of low pressure edged closer to the coast of Guangdong that night, bringing showers and a few thunderstorms to Hong Kong on May 29. Showers were heavy in the afternoon with more than 30 millimetres of rainfall generally recorded over the territory. A strong easterly airstream affected the coast of Guangdong on the last two days of the month. Locally, it was cloudy with rain on May 30. Around 20 millimetres of rainfall were recorded over Hong Kong Island, Kowloon East, Sha Tin and Sai Kung districts. It was mainly cloudy on the last day of the month, with one or two rain patches in the morning and at night.     
      
     There was no tropical cyclone over the South China Sea and the western North Pacific in May 2025.
      
     Details of issuance and cancellation of various warnings/signals in the month are summarised in Table 1. Monthly meteorological figures and departures from normal for May are tabulated in Table 2.

     Following are the remarks by the Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, at a media session before the Executive Council meeting today (June 3):

Reporter: Good morning, Mr Lee. Some English questions. First, can you tell us more about the way forward between your administration and the Beijing's liaison office with the new appointment of Mr Zhou Ji? And the second question, how will the Government proceed with a review on tunnel tolls after taking back the Tai Lam Tunnel, and will that have any implication on new infrastructure, such as the Central Kowloon Route? Thank you.

Chief Executive: The work of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government (LOCPG) in the Hong Kong SAR (Special Administrative Region) is to facilitate exchanges and co-operation between Hong Kong and the Mainland, enhancing interactions between the two places. I think good communication and understanding with the LOCPG will be beneficial to both the governance of the Hong Kong Government and also in assisting the Central Government in designing policies for Hong Kong. I think communication and understanding are important, so that the actual situation of Hong Kong is correctly reflected, and the aspirations and requests of the Hong Kong Government can also be duly reflected. 

     I respect Director Zhou because he has a humble personality and a pragmatic character. In my dealing with him while he was working in the Hong Kong and Macao Work Office (of the CPC Central Committee) in the last two years, my communication with him was very good, and it was always a pleasant experience. He has a lot of local administration experience, and he takes the interests of Hong Kong close to his heart, and he is a staunch supporter for the faithful and correct implementation of the "one country, two systems" principle, which, of course, is the cornerstone for the success and prosperity of Hong Kong. I will work my very best to ensure that my communication and understanding with Director Zhou and also with the Liaison Office as a whole will be enhanced, so that the best policies for Hong Kong will be made as a result of full and accurate reflection of the situation of Hong Kong. 

     I thank Director Zhou for stating categorically and publicly that he will continue to support the Chief Executive and the Hong Kong SAR Government to dutifully govern Hong Kong in accordance with the law. Good communication and liaison with the LOCPG will benefit Hong Kong as a whole; especially it is in the interest of the people of Hong Kong and the long-term stability and prosperity of Hong Kong.

     As regards the Government taking over the Tai Lam Tunnel and implementing the HKeToll, we have already seen that the tolls for different kinds of vehicles have dropped significantly, and the drop ranges from about 20 per cent to 80 per cent. The drop for, for example, a private vehicle – if we talk about the off-peak time – is something like 70 per cent, which is a reduction from $58 to $18. Because we have adopted HKeToll, it gives us the flexibility of fixing different charges at different times for different vehicles. The HKeToll allows us to do good rationalisation of traffic control and overall traffic enforcement. I am glad to see that now all tolled tunnels in Hong Kong have implemented the free-flow tolling service. They do not have to stop when they pay their tolls. 

     In assessing which tunnels will be charged, I think the Budget has already laid down a good framework for this to be tackled. The Budget has already stated very clearly that a lot of money is spent on building and also managing different tunnels and trunk roads. There are several principles I think we should adopt. First of all, "user pays", I think, is a fair policy. There is a need to have charges for particularly major tunnels and trunk roads, because there is a need for traffic management. Charges will help in managing the traffic flow, and it will also help to ensure that public transport will be given priority in the use of roads. It will also ensure that there will be maximum efficiency as a result of good traffic management. Then, of course, in assessing how much will be charged, the public's affordability will be taken into consideration. Overall, we have about 19 sets of government tunnels and trunk roads. Nine of them are tolled tunnels. We will continue to make assessment of the different tunnels and trunk roads to examine how we will go about designing the tunnel charges. Then, of course, priority will be placed on the tunnels for which the charges have remained unchanged for a long, long time; because of inflation and various factors, the charges do not actually reflect the present situation. And then, of course, another priority will be new tunnels or new trunk roads, because they will be opened up for use. We need to design the appropriate level of charging.

     The Central Kowloon Route will be completed at the end of this year. Yes, we will design the appropriate charges, and we will also report to the Legislative Council's panel appropriately. Thank you.

(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the remarks.)

The following is issued on behalf of the Major Sports Events Committee:
 
     The Major Sports Events Committee (MSEC) has awarded "M" Mark status to the 2025 Sun Life Hong Kong International Dragon Boat Races, scheduled to take place June 7 and 8 at the Tsim Sha Tsui East Promenade.

     The Chairman of the MSEC, Mr Wilfred Ng, said today (June 3), "This is the largest dragon boat race in Hong Kong that combines traditional culture with sports competition. Held at Victoria Harbour, it attracts elite teams and dragon boat athletes from various countries and regions to compete fiercely and vie for honour. The race not only promotes the development of dragon boat sports, but also attracts many overseas travellers to the city, strengthening Hong Kong's status as a centre for major international sports events."

     The "M" Mark System aims to encourage and help local National Sports Associations and private or non-government organisations to organise more major international sports events and nurture them into sustainable undertakings. Sports events meeting the assessment criteria will be considered for "M" Mark status by the MSEC. Funding support will also be provided to some events.
           
     For details of "M" Mark events, please visit www.mevents.org.hk.

Attention TV/radio announcers:

Please broadcast the following as soon as possible:

     Here is an item of interest to swimmers.

     The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (June 3) that due to big waves, the red flag has been hoisted at Pui O Beach in Islands District. Beachgoers are advised not to swim at the beach.

     The Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Professor Sun Dong, will depart for a visit to Changchun, Jilin Province, today (June 3) to tour advanced manufacturing enterprises and learn about the development of the advanced manufacturing industry there.

     Professor Sun will return to Hong Kong in the evening on June 4. During his absence, the Under Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Ms Lillian Cheong, will be the Acting Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry.