Consumption Vouchers Barely Make Dent in Sales

Consumption vouchers aren't benefiting small businesses

The HK$5,000 e-vouchers are supposed to inject a whopping HK$30 billion into Hong Kong's economy and aimed at benefiting small retailers, but some report only a small uptick in business.

In Kennedy Town, a small fashion boutique owner reported no difference in revenue, even though she signed up to use Octopus cards in her shop, as installation and transaction fees would be waived for the first six months. She plans to return the card terminal when the period waived is up.

People buy expensive items without voucher

"About 10 percent of my clients started using electronic payment methods, but revenue didn't actually increase," she said.

Another shop selling imported frozen food also in Kennedy Town saw a slight increase in sales when the e-vouchers first came out in August that later died down, and no increase in the second installment. 

"I didn't see them spend more than usual or buy more expensive things because of the consumption vouchers," Jimmy Tsoi said. "Younger people may save up [the installments] to buy something more expensive at once. It would feel better than using it to buy small items, or something for daily use."

But according to the Census and Statistics Department, overall sales jumped 11.9 percent in August compared to the same time last year. However August 2020 was before Hong Kong had vaccines and there were strict social-distancing measures in place at the time, thus sales were low then too, points out Annie Tse, chairperson of the Hong Kong Retail Management Association.

Sales in footwear saw a big increase year-on-year

Retailers selling footwear and clothing saw the biggest rebound compared to other types of businesses, recording a 62.3 percent year-on-year increase in August, while optical shops saw a 60.4 percent rise compared to the same period last year according to government statistics.

Nevertheless, restaurants in general are doing a healthy trade, though it doesn't have much to do with consumption vouchers, as it is the high-end restaurants that are busy these days with wealthy customers splashing out on fine dining meals that they would have spent on trips.

So while the Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po intended the e-vouchers to help small businesses, his elaborate and grand plan barely made a dent.

Hong Kong's Student Population is Shrinking

At least 81 Primary One classes were cut this school year

 

In the latest count, there are at least 81 fewer Primary One classes in Hong Kong's public school system. With about 25 students in each class, that means around 2,000 pupils have either emigrated, switched into the private school system, or were mainland students taking Hong Kong classes online and dropped out.

Originally back in March, the Education Bureau released a report on primary schools, saying 66 classes would be cut in the 450 public primary schools in the city.

Many children may have migrated elsewhere

A representative of local principals said he expected the drop could be even bigger next school year, as those students across the border in China may quit taking online classes at Hong Kong schools if the border remains closed because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Chu Wai-lam, chairman of the North District Primary School Heads Association, said his school has already received 20 percent less Primary One admission applications for the coming year.

"Moreover, if the border fails to open, some of the cross-border students who are now learning online will eventually quit school," Chu said. "So it's a double hit."

He believes it will be difficult to fill 3,000 Primary One spaces in North District for the following academic year.

The bureau released a statement noting that such a fluctuation "often reflects the overall changes in the population of school-aged students and its mobility", which includes emigration and people leaving the public school system for private ones.

Mainland students have quit online classes in HK

According to the bureau, 60,000 six-year-olds were eligible to begin Primary One this year. 

In July, official data showed more than 15,000 pupils had quit school in the 12 months leading up to October last year, a 2 percent drop in the primary and secondary school population, which was about 691,000.

Figures from the Census and Statistics Department last month showed a net outflow of about 89,200 residents since mid 2020, when Beijing imposed the new national security law.

The future of Hong Kong is shrinking day by day...

 

HK to Push Up Elderly Vaccination Rate

Fewer than 30 percent of seniors over 70 have their first jab

 

Looks like Hong Kong might really be getting serious about pushing up vaccination rates now as there are plans for government workers to go door-to-door to visit the elderly and persuade them to get the jab. 

Secretary for the Civil Service Patrick Nip Tak-kuen, who is overseeing the vaccination drive, stressed the city was behind its target of inoculating at least 70 percent of the eligible population. Fewer than 30 percent of residents over 70 years old had gotten their first dose, and the rate was substantially lower for those over 80, he noted. 

"Elderly people in the city are the group least interested in vaccination. We have to be more proactive, and make getting into the community to reach senior people our coming strategy," he told a radio program.

Nip says workers will visit elderly door-to-door

However, one should keep in mind that many university students like the ones at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology in Clear Water Bay must be fully vaccinated to even be allowed on campus, teachers must be jabbed, and many companies have pushed hard for their staff to get vaccinated, particularly those in the hospitality industry.

At the start of the vaccination program, when seniors were invited to get inoculated first, there were reports of those who had serious side effects, and some died -- that were not at all related to the vaccine -- which scared off many elderly residents.

To that end Nip says talks will be organized as some housing estates and malls, with free consultations and immediate vaccination on site.

"We will also do more talks at care homes for the elderly, as most of them did not get vaccinated there due to family members' worries," he added.

Doctors will be on hand to give consultations

Going door-to-door is a very strong step up from trying to persuade people to get jabbed in press conferences. Depending on how they approach the seniors, government workers may get doors slammed in their faces or adamant refusals to get vaccinated.

Maybe they should have teamed up with the Census and Statistics Department a few months ago to not only count the number of residents in Hong Kong but also check to see if they have been inoculated.

Implementing this strategy now shows the government was not that serious about pushing for vaccinations, and seems to use this as an excuse to continue the restrictive social-distancing measures, particularly gatherings at a maximum of four people outside.

Meanwhile the Standard Chartered Marathon 2021 really is happening on October 24 when a total of 18,500 runners (all fully vaccinated) will take part in the 10K, half marathon and full marathon... 

The Standard Chartered Marathon is going ahead

I did not get chosen in the lottery to run the 10K, and just as well, as the starting point has moved to the Western Harbour Crossing toll booth, which means running through the cross-harbour tunnel (which I hear is a slog) and finishing at Victoria Park in Causeway Bay. 

Running in October will also be more challenging with the humidity than the usual time of late January, early February, and I have hardly been training either, opting instead to walking.

Nevertheless, we wish the government good luck in trying to persuade seniors to get jabbed... they can be a tough crowd!

Education Chief Insists No Significant Drop in Pupils

School may have started but class numbers have plunged

 

The Hong Kong government continues to spin, spi,n spin, hoping the more they repeat things, the more they become fact.

A few days ago Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor insisted there wasn't a crackdown on civil society groups, only that the national security police are investigating them to ensure they aren't violating the law.

Yeung insists there is no big drop in pupils

But the reality is that many of the groups are attacked by pro-Beijing media, causing the organizations to disband as quickly as possible in a bid to avoid further trouble. But security chief Chris Tang Ping-keung says the authorities are already investigating the groups even if they are dissolving.

So is that a crackdown or not?

Today it's a quibble about the number of students in the city.

Schools have reported cutting the number of classes, but the Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung Yun-hung claims this does not mean there is a huge drop in pupils.

Official figures show 66 classes have been cut citywide, and with each class having about 25 students, that's about 1,600 spots that were cut.

Many have gone overseas in past year

The Education Bureau expects some 60,000 students starting in Primary One this year. 

"I think there is some misunderstanding on the figures... Does it mean we are seeing a significant drop in students? That is not really the case," Yeung told reporters.

"It does not actually reflect the forecast of the [number] of possible Primary One students. What we will be doing by the middle of the month is a headcount of the new Primary One students, then we will know better [if there is] any major change in the population or the number of students admitted to Primary One."

But primary school heads believed the number of classes were cut due to many families emigrating this year, particularly over the summer, prompted by the national security law.

Another reason is mainland students who used to cross the border everyday to go to school in Hong Kong, have dropped out after months of online classes.

Cross-border students have quit HK schools

In July, official data showed more than 15,000 students had quit school in 12 months, with nearly 691,000 students enrolled in primary and secondary schools as of October last year, down from more than the 706,000 registered in 2019.

Meanwhile, figures from the Census and Statistics Department last month showed a net outflow of about 89,200 residents over the year from mid-2020.

Yeung however did concede there has been an increase in people leaving Hong Kong recently and children of various ages are moving to other places.

So how can he say there hasn't been a drop in student numbers? Of those 89,200 people who left Hong Kong, many of them must be children...