The Census and Statistics Department (C&SD) published today (November 15) the November 2018 issue of the "Hong Kong Monthly Digest of Statistics" (HKMDS).

     Apart from providing up-to-date statistics, this issue also contains two feature articles entitled "Dependency Trend in Hong Kong" and "Human Capital in Hong Kong".

"Dependency Trend in Hong Kong"

     An ageing trend of the Hong Kong population was observed in the past 30 years or so. The median age of the population (excluding foreign domestic helpers) increased from 26.7 in 1982 to 45.3 (provisional) in 2018. Analyses of the changing structure of the population in terms of age and economic activity status are crucial for understanding the dependency trend in Hong Kong. This feature article analyses the dependency trend in Hong Kong through various indicators.

     For enquiries about this feature article, please contact the Household Statistics Analysis Section, C&SD (Tel: 2887 5208; email: ghs@censtatd.gov.hk).

"Human Capital in Hong Kong"

     Human capital development has long been seen as one of the thrusts for enhancing competitiveness and sustaining economic development of an economy. This feature article focuses on two groups in human capital, viz. persons with post-secondary education and persons working as professionals/associate professionals, who are crucial to the development of a knowledge-based economy.

     For enquiries about this feature article, please contact the Science and Technology Statistics Section, C&SD (Tel: 3903 7282; email: stb1@censtatd.gov.hk).

     Published in bilingual form, the HKMDS is a compact volume of official statistics containing about 140 tables. It collects up-to-date statistical series on various aspects of the social and economic situation of Hong Kong. Topics include population; labour; external trade; National Income and Balance of Payments; prices; business performance; energy; housing and property; government accounts, finance and insurance; and transport, communications and tourism. For selected key statistical items, over 20 charts depicting the annual trend in the past decade and quarterly or monthly trend in the recent two years are also available. Users can download the Digest free of charge at the website of the C&SD (www.censtatd.gov.hk/hkstat/sub/sp460.jsp?productCode=B1010002).

     Enquiries about the contents of the Digest can be directed to the Statistical Information Services Section of the C&SD (Tel: 2582 4738; email: gen-enquiry@censtatd.gov.hk).

     A man was fined $8,000 at the Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts today (November 15) for contravening the Hotel and Guesthouse Accommodation Ordinance.
           
     The courts heard that in January this year, officers of the Office of the Licensing Authority (OLA), the Home Affairs Department, inspected a suspected unlicensed guesthouse on Nathan Road in Tsim Sha Tsui. During the inspection, the OLA officers posed as lodgers and successfully rented a room in the guesthouse on a daily basis.
      
     According to the OLA's records, the guesthouse did not possess a licence under the Ordinance on the day of inspection. The man responsible for managing the premise was 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".

The following is issued on behalf of the Legislative Council Secretariat:

     The Legislative Council (LegCo) Subcommittee on Two Orders Made under Section 49 (1A) of the Inland Revenue Ordinance and Gazetted on 14 September 2018 will hold a meeting tomorrow (November 16) at 8.30am in Conference Room 2B of the LegCo Complex. 

     The first meeting of LegCo Subcommittee on Pharmacy and Poisons (Amendment) (No. 6) Regulation 2018 originally scheduled for tomorrow at 10.45am has been cancelled.

     Meanwhile, the meeting of LegCo Finance Committee (FC) originally scheduled at 3pm tomorrow in Conference Room 1 of the LegCo Complex will start at 3.30pm (or an earlier time between 3.15pm and 3.30pm).  If the preceding House Committee (HC) meeting ends before 3.15pm, the FC meeting will start at 3.15pm; if the preceding HC meeting ends between 3.15pm and 3.30pm, the FC meeting will start immediately after the HC meeting.

     A new smart Hong Kong identity card (HKIC) roving exhibition organised by the Immigration Department will be held this Saturday and Sunday (November 17 and 18) from 11am to 7pm at the Atrium, Expo & Board Game Area, L1 of D‧Park, Tsuen Wan. Members of the public are invited to attend and admission is free.

     Through various forms of display panels, a touchscreen display and promotional videos, the exhibition will introduce the new smart HKIC, contents of the Territory-wide Identity Card Replacement Exercise and the history of the HKIC. In addition, a games stall will be set up and relevant promotional materials and souvenirs will be distributed. Members of the public may gain a better understanding of the new smart HKIC and details of the Replacement Exercise through the exhibition.

     The roving exhibition will later be held at other districts and the details shall be announced in due course.

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:
 
     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority published today (November 15) the credit card lending survey results for the third quarter of 2018.
 
     Total card receivables increased by 1.3 per cent in the third quarter to HK$125.9 billion at end-September 2018, after growing by 3.0 per cent in the previous quarter.
 
     The combined delinquent and rescheduled ratio edged down to 0.32 per cent at end-September 2018 from 0.33 per cent at the previous quarter-end.
 
     The charge-off amount increased by HK$7 million during the quarter to HK$512 million, while the quarterly charge-off ratio remained stable at 0.41 per cent.