Author Archives: hksar gov

     A 62-year-old man was sentenced to immediate imprisonment for one week by the Kowloon City Magistrates’ Courts today (July 7) for violating the Compulsory Quarantine of Certain Persons Arriving at Hong Kong Regulation (Cap 599C).

     The man was earlier issued a compulsory quarantine order stating that he must conduct quarantine at home for 14 days. When the Police intercepted the man at Hung Hom on June 24 upon receipt of a report, he was found to have removed the electronic wristband. He was charged with contravening sections 8 (4) and 8 (5) of the Regulation and was sentenced by the Kowloon City Magistrates’ Courts today to immediate imprisonment for one week.    
 
     Pursuant to the Regulation, save for exempted persons, all persons who have stayed in the Mainland, Macao or Taiwan in the 14 days preceding arrival in Hong Kong, regardless of their nationality or travel documents, will be subject to compulsory quarantine for 14 days. Moreover, pursuant to the Compulsory Quarantine of Persons Arriving at Hong Kong from Foreign Places Regulation (Cap 599E), starting from March 19, all persons arriving from countries or territories outside China would also be subject to compulsory quarantine for 14 days. Breaching a quarantine order is a criminal offence and offenders are subject to a maximum fine of $25,000 and imprisonment for six months. The Department of Health (DH) solemnly reminds persons under quarantine to comply with the statutory requirements and conduct quarantine for 14 days.

     A spokesman for the DH said the sentence sends a clear message to the community that breaching the Regulation is a criminal offence and that the Government will not tolerate such actions. As of today, a total of 29 persons have been convicted by the courts with imprisonment sentences of up to three months or a fine of $10,000. The spokesman reiterated that resolute actions will be taken against anyone who has breached the Regulation. read more

The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:      As at noon today (July 7), four COVID-19 confirmed patients (case numbers: 1116, 1117, 1181 and 1197) were discharged from hospital in the past 24 hours. So f… read more

     The Government announced that the Cash Payout Scheme has disbursed payment to about 1.24 million eligible people today (July 7). A cumulative total of over 4.3 million eligible registrants who registered electronically with banks on or before June 30 have received payment via their selected personal bank accounts. 

     Furthermore, people registering electronically through banks from July 1 will start receiving payment from tomorrow (July 8) onwards.

     Members of the public who have not yet registered are encouraged to register through Internet banking or banks’ websites so as to receive payment in the most secure and convenient way. Eligible registrants will receive payment about one week after registration.

     Registration for the Scheme is open until December 31, 2021.

     The public may visit the website of the Scheme (www.cashpayout.gov.hk) or call 18 2020 for detailed information on the Scheme.
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The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:
      
     The Monetary Authority announced today (July 7) that the countercyclical capital buffer (CCyB) for Hong Kong remains unchanged at 1.0%.
      
     “While some local economic activities are showing signs of picking up, economic recovery will take time and many small and medium-sized enterprises are still under stress.” Mr. Eddie Yue, the Monetary Authority, said. “The economic environment in Hong Kong is subject to a high level of uncertainty at the moment. It is therefore appropriate to keep the CCyB ratio unchanged and continue to monitor the situation for the time being.”
      
     Further details of the decision may be found in the Announcement of the CCyB to Authorized Institutions on the HKMA website.
      
Background
      
     In setting the CCyB ratio the Monetary Authority considered a series of quantitative indicators and qualitative information including an “indicative buffer guide” (which is a metric providing a guide for CCyB ratio based on the gap between the ratio of credit to GDP and its long term trend, and between the ratio of residential property prices to rentals and its long term trend). The latest indicative buffer guide, calculated based on 2020 Q1 data, signals a CCyB of 2.25%. The projection based on all available data suggests that the indicative buffer guide would very likely signal a higher CCyB than this when all relevant 2020 Q2 data will be available.
      
     Whilst the indicative buffer guide, as its name suggests, provides only a “guide” for CCyB decisions, the determination of the jurisdictional CCyB ratio for Hong Kong is not a mechanical exercise and, in addition to the indicative buffer guide, the Monetary Authority also reviewed a range of other reference indicators. The information drawn from all these sources suggests that the economic environment in Hong Kong is subject to a high level of uncertainty at the moment. It is therefore more appropriate to keep the CCyB ratio unchanged at 1.0% and continue to monitor the situation for the time being.
      
     The CCyB is an integral part of the Basel III regulatory capital framework and is being implemented in parallel by Basel Committee member jurisdictions worldwide. The CCyB has been designed by the Basel Committee to increase the resilience of the banking sector in periods of excess credit growth. The banking sector can then act as a “shock absorber” in times of stress, rather than as an amplifier of risk to the broader economy.
      
     The power to implement the CCyB in Hong Kong is provided by the Banking (Capital) Rules, which enable the Monetary Authority to announce a CCyB ratio for Hong Kong. The specific CCyB requirement applicable to a given Authorized Institution (AI) is expressed as a percentage of its CET1 capital to its total risk-weighted assets (RWA). Each AI’s CCyB requirement may vary depending on the geographic mix of its private sector credit exposures and the CCyB applicable in each jurisdiction where it has such exposures. read more

     The Secretary for Innovation and Technology, Mr Alfred Sit, today (July 7) visited the Hong Kong Chinese Church of Christ Grace Elderly Activity Centre to better understand the operation of an anti-epidemic food support programme launched under the Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Fund (SIE Fund) food support flagship project, FOOD-CO. Mr Sit encouraged service operators to continue to drive innovative programmes to create social impacts and strengthen social cohesion.
 
     The Chief Executive Officer of St James’ Settlement, Ms Josephine Lee, gave a briefing on the operation of the anti-epidemic food support programme via the FOOD-CO platform, followed by a demonstration on how the platform could boost the efficiency of food distribution with the aid of information technology and data analysis and help those affected by the pandemic in a timely manner.
 
     “The impact of COVID-19 on our economy has been swift and severe, with the grass roots being hard hit. I am grateful to our service operators for joining hands with the Government and lending a helping hand to people in need through the anti-epidemic food support programme via the FOOD-CO platform. The SIE Fund will continue to foster cross-sectoral collaboration to benefit more people in need and promote social inclusion,” Mr Sit said.
 
     Mr Sit then joined volunteers to distribute food packs to families in need and chatted with them. Each food pack includes fast-food shop cash coupons, fresh food, oatmeal, noodles and canned food. To observe proper social distancing during the pandemic, service operators will register the families in need in advance to shorten the time for collection and queuing.
 
     With a $5 million donation in February, FOOD-CO has started providing food support to the grass-roots citizens affected by the pandemic in four districts through its social service partners. With an allocation of a $5 million matching fund from the SIE Fund in March, the service was extended to cover the remaining 14 districts to benefit a total of 5 000 people. read more