In response to the Japanese Government's plan to discharge nuclear-contaminated water at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Station, the Director of Food and Environmental Hygiene issued a Food Safety Order which prohibits all aquatic products, sea salt and seaweeds originating from the 10 metropolis/prefectures, namely Tokyo, Fukushima, Ibaraki, Miyagi, Chiba, Gunma, Tochigi, Niigata, Nagano and Saitama, from being imported into and supplied in Hong Kong.
 
     For other Japanese aquatic products, sea salt and seaweeds that are not prohibited from being imported into Hong Kong, the Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department is conducting comprehensive radiological tests to verify that the radiation levels of these products do not exceed the guideline levels before they are allowed to be supplied in the market.
 
     From noon on June 2 to noon today (June 3), the CFS conducted tests on the radiological levels of 152 food samples imported from Japan, which were of the "aquatic and related products, seaweeds and sea salt" category. No sample was found to have exceeded the safety limit. Details can be found on the CFS's thematic website titled "Control Measures on Foods Imported from Japan" (www.cfs.gov.hk/english/programme/programme_rafs/programme_rafs_fc_01_30_Nuclear_Event_and_Food_Safety.html).
 
     In parallel, the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) has also tested 50 samples of local catch for radiological levels. All the samples passed the tests. Details can be found on the AFCD's website (www.afcd.gov.hk/english/fisheries/Radiological_testing/Radiological_Test.html).
 
     The Hong Kong Observatory (HKO) has also enhanced the environmental monitoring of the local waters. No anomaly has been detected so far. For details, please refer to the HKO's website (www.hko.gov.hk/en/radiation/monitoring/seawater.html).
 
     From August 24, 2023, to noon today, the CFS and the AFCD have conducted tests on the radiological levels of 140 699 samples of food imported from Japan (including 92 606 samples of aquatic and related products, seaweeds and sea salt) and 32 288 samples of local catch respectively. All the samples passed the tests.

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:

     Exchange Fund Bills tender results:
 

 
*"Pro rata ratio" refers to the average percentage of allotment with respect to each tender participant's tendered amount at the "highest yield accepted" level.
 
———————————————————
     Hong Kong Monetary Authority tenders to be held in the week beginning June 9, 2025:
 

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:

     â€‹The Hong Kong Monetary Authority, as representative of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, announced today (June 3) the relevant per annum interest rate for the first interest payment of the series of retail infrastructure bonds due 2027 (Issue Number: 03GB2712R; Stock Code: 4286) (the Retail Infrastructure Bonds) issued under the Infrastructure Bond Programme.

     According to the Issue Circular dated November 26, 2024, for the Retail Infrastructure Bonds, the first interest payment of the Retail Infrastructure Bonds is scheduled to be made on June 17, 2025, and the relevant interest rate is scheduled to be determined and announced on June 3, 2025, as the higher of the prevailing Floating Rate and Fixed Rate. 

     On June 3, 2025, the Floating Rate and Fixed Rate are as follows:

Floating Rate: +1.60 per cent (Annex)
Fixed Rate: +3.50 per cent

     Based on the Floating Rate and Fixed Rate set out above, the relevant interest rate for the first interest payment is determined and announced as 3.50 per cent per annum.

     The Census and Statistics Department (C&SD) today (June 3) released the statistics on vessels, port cargo and containers for the first quarter of 2025.
 
     In the first quarter of 2025, total port cargo throughput decreased by 3.9% to 41.1 million tonnes over a year earlier. Within this total, inward port cargo decreased by 10.8% to 24.5 million tonnes, while outward port cargo increased by 8.6% to 16.6 million tonnes.
 
     On a seasonally adjusted quarter-to-quarter comparison, total port cargo throughput increased by 2.6% in the first quarter of 2025. Within this total, inward port cargo decreased by 1.3% compared with the preceding quarter, while outward port cargo increased by 8.9% compared with the preceding quarter. The seasonally adjusted series enables more meaningful shorter-term comparison to be made for discerning possible variations in trends.
 
Port cargo
 
     In the first quarter of 2025, within port cargo, seaborne and river cargo decreased by 3.7% and 4.2% to 25.9 million tonnes and 15.2 million tonnes respectively over a year earlier.
 
     Comparing the first quarter of 2025 with a year earlier, a double-digit increase was recorded in the tonnage of inward port cargo loaded in Chile (+33.3%). On the other hand, double-digit decreases were recorded in the tonnage of inward port cargo loaded in Vietnam (-30.6%), Taiwan (-23.9%), Malaysia (-21.6%), Thailand (-21.4%), Korea (-18.5%), Japan (-13.8%) and the mainland of China (-13.2%). For outward port cargo, double-digit increases were recorded in the tonnage of outward port cargo discharged in Australia (+28.3%), Taiwan (+22.8%) and the mainland of China (+22.5%). On the other hand, double-digit decreases were recorded in the tonnage of outward port cargo discharged in the United States of America (-31.9%), the Philippines (-30.6%), Malaysia (-27.8%), Thailand (-25.9%), Japan (-21.5%) and Vietnam (-18.1%).
 
     Comparing the first quarter of 2025 with a year earlier, double-digit changes were recorded in the tonnage of inward port cargo of "metalliferous ores and metal scrap" (+24.9%), "artificial resins and plastic materials" (-15.0%) and "stone, sand and gravel" (-37.7%). As for outward port cargo, triple-digit or double-digit changes were recorded in the tonnage of "stone, sand and gravel" (+122.9%), "metalliferous ores and metal scrap" (+15.6%) and "artificial resins and plastic materials" (-20.6%).
 
Containers
 
     In the first quarter of 2025, the port of Hong Kong handled 3.37 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of containers, representing an increase of 1.6% over a year earlier. Within this total, laden containers decreased by 3.3% to 2.58 million TEUs, while empty containers increased by 21.2% to 0.80 million TEUs. Among laden containers, inward and outward containers decreased by 2.9% and 3.6% to 1.39 million TEUs and 1.19 million TEUs respectively.
 
     On a seasonally adjusted quarter-to-quarter comparison, laden container throughput increased by 1.6% in the first quarter of 2025. Within this total, inward laden containers increased by 3.3%, while outward laden containers decreased by 0.4%.
 
     In the first quarter of 2025, seaborne and river laden containers decreased by 3.3% and 3.2% to 1.82 million TEUs and 0.76 million TEUs respectively over a year earlier.
 
Vessel arrivals
 
     Comparing the first quarter of 2025 with a year earlier, the number of ocean vessel arrivals decreased by 1.1% to 4 506, with the total capacity also decreasing by 3.8% to 70.8 million net tons. Meanwhile, the number of river vessel arrivals decreased by 0.7% to 19 800, while the total capacity increased by 22.6% to 23.1 million net tons.
 
Further information
 
     Port cargo and laden container statistics are compiled from a sample of consignments listed in the cargo manifests supplied by shipping companies and agents to the C&SD. Vessel statistics are compiled by the Marine Department primarily from general declarations submitted by ship masters and authorised shipping agents. Pleasure vessels and fishing vessels plying exclusively within the river trade limits are excluded.
 
     Table 1 presents the detailed port cargo statistics.
 
     Table 2 and Table 3 respectively present the inward and outward port cargo statistics by main countries/territories of loading and discharge.
 
     Table 4 and Table 5 respectively present the inward and outward port cargo statistics by principal commodities.
 
     Table 6 presents the detailed container statistics.
 
     Table 7 presents the statistics on vessel arrivals in Hong Kong.
 
     More detailed statistics on port cargo, containers and vessels are published in the report "Hong Kong Shipping Statistics, First Quarter 2025". Users can browse and download this publication at the website of the C&SD (www.censtatd.gov.hk/en/EIndexbySubject.html?pcode=B1020008&scode=230).
 
     For enquiries about port cargo and container statistics, please contact the Electronic Trading Services and Cargo Statistics Section of the C&SD (Tel: 2582 2126 or email: shipping@censtatd.gov.hk). For enquiries about vessel statistics, readers may contact the Statistics Section under the Planning, Development and Port Security Branch of the Marine Department (Tel: 2852 3662 or email: st-sec@mardep.gov.hk).

     The Hong Kong Police Force, in collaboration with the police forces of Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR), Malaysia, the Maldives, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand, conducted the first joint operation of the Cross-border Anti-Scam Collaboration Platform "FRONTIER+" from April 28 to May 28. The operation achieved significant results in combating cross-border scam activities.

     During the month-long operation, over 2 700 law enforcement officers from seven countries and regions were deployed, successfully identifying and dismantling multiple cross-border scam syndicates. In total, 1 858 individuals (aged between 14 and 81) were arrested, involving 9 268 scam cases, including online shopping scams, telephone deceptions (such as government official impersonation scams and impersonating customer service scams), investment scams, rental scams, and employment scams, etc, with a total loss amounting to US$225 million. A total of 32 607 bank accounts were frozen, and approximately US$20 million fraudulent funds were intercepted, effectively disrupting criminal cash flows. Enforcement details of the countries and regions are set out in the Annex.

     Investigation revealed that scam trends show notable similarities across different jurisdictions. For instance, the impersonation of customer service representatives emerged as a widespread scam tactic in Hong Kong in 2024 and the trend started to drop in 2025 after police intervention. However, similar fraudulent schemes employing identical scripts and excuses to deceive citizens into monetary losses began to appear in Singapore and Macao SAR in 2025. This underscores the critical need for cross-jurisdictional collaboration and intelligence sharing to combat scam syndicates effectively.

     The Cross-border Anti-Scam Collaboration Platform "FRONTIER+" was jointly established by various anti-scam centres in October 2024. As of now, the platform includes anti-scam centres from 10 countries and regions, namely Australia, Canada, Hong Kong SAR, Indonesia, Macao SAR, Malaysia, the Maldives, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand. By strengthening intelligence exchange and coordinated actions, the platform aims to combat scams, cyber-related crimes and money laundering. The platform will continue to conduct real-time intelligence analysis and sharing, carry out cross-border joint operations from time to time, and expand its network by inviting more countries and regions to join in order to enhance enforcement efficiency.

     Members of the public are urged to remain vigilant against scams at all times and to exercise caution in their financial transactions. Avoid hastily clicking on hyperlinks, downloading mobile applications, or logging into suspicious websites. If in doubt, the public is advised to verify suspicious information or websites using "Scameter" on CyberDefender’s website (cyberdefender.hk/en-us/scameter/), or the mobile app "Scameter+"; or to call the "Anti-Scam Helpline 18222" for enquiries