An exhibition entitled "Craft and Technology: Applications of three-dimensional laser scanning for heritage conservation and education" will open on September 21 (Friday) at the Hong Kong Heritage Discovery Centre. The exhibition will introduce details of how the Antiquities and Monuments Office (AMO) applies innovative 3D laser scanning and 3D printing technologies to heritage conservation and education.

     Through the display of "point cloud" images, 3D printout models, photos, videos and interactive exhibits, the public can learn how the AMO makes use of the "point clouds" captured by 3D laser scanning to generate digital models of historic buildings, archaeological relics and building components. By applying 3D printing technologies, 3D solid models can be produced to build up an archive for reference in future heritage conservation works. The exhibition will also introduce how the AMO uses 3D laser scanning for monitoring any changes in monuments, and the data collected for planning and implementation of heritage education activities.

     Highlight exhibits include a 3D printout model of "Inviting Phoenix by Flute-playing" on the roof ridge of Man Mo Temple in Sheung Wan; "point cloud" images of the interior of Tsui Sing Lau Pagoda and its environs; and a 3D mesh model of the Former Kowloon-Canton Railway Clock Tower.

     Officiating at the opening ceremony today (September 19) were the Director of Leisure and Cultural Services, Ms Michelle Li; the Chairman of the Antiquities Advisory Board, Mr Andrew Lam; the Commissioner for Heritage of the Development Bureau, Mr José Yam; and the Executive Secretary of the AMO, Ms Susanna Siu.

     The exhibition, which offers free admission and runs until December 2, is presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and organised by the AMO. For details of the exhibition, please visit the AMO's website at www.amo.gov.hk, or call 2208 4400.

     The Hong Kong Heritage Discovery Centre is located in Kowloon Park, Haiphong Road, Tsim Sha Tsui.

     The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (September 19) that Tai Mei Tuk Water Sports Centre in Tai Po District and Chong Hing Water Sports Centre in Sai Kung District will be reopened tomorrow (September 20) and on Friday (September 21) respectively. These water sports centres were temporarily closed earlier due to urgent clearance and repair works after the typhoon.

     Meanwhile, Stanley Main Beach Water Sports Centre and St Stephen's Beach Water Sports Centre in Southern District, Hong Kong Island, and the Jockey Club Wong Shek Water Sports Centre in Sai Kung District will remain closed until further notice as more time is needed for urgent clearance and repair works due to the typhoon's impact.

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority: 
 
     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced today (September 19) the composite interest rate at the end of August 2018.＊
      
     The composite interest rate, which is a measure of the average cost of funds of banks, increased by 3 basis points to 0.66% at the end of August 2018, from 0.63% at the end of July 2018 (see Chart 1 in the Annex). The rise in composite interest rate reflected increases in the weighted funding costs for both deposits and interbank funds during the month (see Chart 2 in the Annex).
      
     The historical data of the composite interest rate from the end of the fourth quarter of 2003 to the end of August 2018 are available in the Monthly Statistical Bulletin on the HKMA website (www.hkma.gov.hk). The next data release is scheduled for October 19, 2018 and will provide the composite interest rate at the end of September 2018.
 
＊ The composite interest rate is a weighted average interest rate of all Hong Kong dollar interest bearing liabilities, which include deposits from customers, amounts due to banks, negotiable certificates of deposit and other debt instruments, and Hong Kong dollar non-interest bearing demand deposits on the books of banks.  Data from retail banks, which account for about 90% of the total customers’ deposits in the banking sector, are used in the calculation.  It should be noted that the composite interest rate represents only average interest expenses.  There are various other costs involved in the making of a loan, such as operating costs (e.g. staff and rental expenses), credit cost and hedging cost, which are not covered by the composite interest rate.

     The Census and Statistics Department (C&SD) released today (September 19) the preliminary figures of chain volume measures of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by economic activity for the second quarter of 2018.

     GDP figures by economic activity show the value of production in respect of individual economic activities. The value of production is measured by net output or value added, which is calculated by deducting intermediate input consumed in the process of production from the gross value of output. Volume measures of GDP by economic activity, expressed in terms of chain volume measures net of the effect of price changes, enable analysis of the output growth profiles of individual economic sectors in real terms.

     According to the preliminary figures, overall GDP increased by 3.5% in real terms in the second quarter of 2018 over a year earlier, compared with the 4.6% increase in the first quarter of 2018.

     Analysed by constituent services sector and on a year-on-year comparison, net output in respect of all the services activities taken together increased by 3.8% in real terms in the second quarter of 2018 over a year earlier, compared with the 4.4% increase in the first quarter.

     Net output in the import and export, wholesale and retail trades sector grew by 5.7% in real terms in the second quarter of 2018 over a year earlier, following the growth of 6.4% in the first quarter. The continued growth of this sector was mainly attributable to the solid growth of external merchandise trade during the quarter.   

     Net output in the financing and insurance sector increased by 5.2% in real terms in the second quarter of 2018 over a year earlier, compared with the 6.8% rise in the first quarter. Trading activities stayed generally active during the quarter, rendering support to the continued growth of net output in this sector.

     Net output in the accommodation services (covering hotels, guesthouses, boarding houses and other establishments providing short term accommodation) and food services sector grew by 3.7% in real terms in the second quarter of 2018 over a year earlier, following the increase of 5.9% in the first quarter.

     Net output in the transportation, storage, postal and courier services sector rose by 4.4% in real terms in the second quarter of 2018 over a year earlier, compared with the growth of 4.9% in the first quarter.

     Net output in the information and communications sector registered an increase of 3.4% in real terms in the second quarter of 2018 over a year earlier, compared with the growth of 3.1% in the first quarter.

     Net output in the real estate, professional and business services sector rose by 2.0% in real terms in the second quarter of 2018 over a year earlier, similar to the growth of 2.1% in the first quarter.

    Net output in the public administration, social and personal services sector increased by 3.0% in real terms in the second quarter of 2018 over a year earlier, compared with the growth of 3.4% in the first quarter.

     As for sectors other than the services sectors, net output in the local manufacturing sector rose by 1.6% in real terms in the second quarter of 2018 over a year earlier, compared with the 1.1% growth in the first quarter.

     Net output in the electricity, gas and water supply, and waste management sector recorded an increase of 4.4% in real terms in the second quarter of 2018 over a year earlier, compared with the growth of 4.2% in the first quarter.

     Net output in the construction sector dropped by 3.2% in real terms in the second quarter of 2018 from a year earlier, as against the increase of 3.5% in the first quarter.

Further information

     The year-on-year percentage changes of GDP by economic activity in real terms from the second quarter of 2017 to the second quarter of 2018 are shown in Table 1. For enquiries about statistics on GDP by economic activity, please call the National Income Branch (2) of the C&SD at telephone number 3903 7005.

     Figures of chain volume measures of GDP by economic activity for the second quarter of 2018 are only preliminary at this stage. When more data become available, the preliminary figures will be revised accordingly. More detailed figures can also be found at the Hong Kong Statistics section of the C&SD website (www.censtatd.gov.hk).

     A man and a woman were fined $6,000 and $8,000 at Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts today (September 19) for contravening the Hotel and Guesthouse Accommodation Ordinance.

     The courts heard that in February this year, officers of the Office of the Licensing Authority (OLA), the Home Affairs Department, inspected two suspected unlicensed guesthouses on Maidstone Lane in To Kwa Wan and Sheung Shing Street in Ho Man Tin. During the inspections, the OLA officers posed as lodgers and successfully rented rooms in these guesthouses on a daily basis.

     According to the OLA's records, these guesthouses did not possess licences under the Ordinance on the days of inspection. The man and woman responsible for operating the premises were charged with contravening section 5(1) of the Ordinance.

     A department spokesman stressed that operating or managing an unlicensed guesthouse is a criminal offence and will lead to a criminal record. Upon conviction, the offender is liable to a maximum fine of $200,000 and two years' imprisonment.
           
     The spokesman appealed to anyone with information about suspected unlicensed guesthouses to report it to the OLA through the hotline (Tel: 2881 7498), by email (hadlaenq@had.gov.hk), by fax (2504 5805) using the report form downloaded from the OLA website (www.hadla.gov.hk), or through the mobile application "Hong Kong Licensed Hotels and Guesthouses".