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.

HK Delegates Told Not to Come to Beijing

Tam was told Friday not to come to Beijing next week

To illustrate how paranoid Beijing is about Covid-19 coming into the Chinese capital, Hong Kong's only delegate to the National People's Congress Standing Committee Tam Yiu-chung has been strongly advised not to come following one untraceable Covid-19 case.

It is that of a 48-year-old cargo handler who was infected on October 8 and the source of the infection is still unknown.

Tam's chances of coming into contact with this person is so small and yet Beijing has told him not to bother coming on Monday for the session from Tuesday to Saturday.

A cargo handler was infected on October 8

Three other NPC delegates from Hong Kong won't be going either: Choy So-yuk, Nicholas Chan Hiu-fung, and Wong Kwan-yu.

"I got a notification from the country's epidemic control office informing me that I would not be allowed to attend the NPC Standing Committee meeting," Tam said in a video clip posted by his party, the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong. 

"Recently there was one unknown case in Hong Kong. The mainland attaches great attention to unknown cases," Tam said, adding that no Hong Kong-related items were on the agenda anyway.

Nevertheless, it signals Beijing is not ready to open its borders with the city anytime soon.

"Beijing's prevention and control measures are very stringent. When there are changes to the pandemic situation in Hong Kong, especially when there are cases with untraceable origins, they will be even stricter," Tam said.

Hui says Beijing concerned of untraceable cases

While Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor was able to go to Guangzhou for the opening of the Canton Fair a few days ago, Beijing is even more stringent when it comes to Covid-19. 

Government pandemic adviser David Hui Shu-cheong says measures for meeting top officials is even stricter, as they are worried of untraceable infections coming in.

"I am not too optimistic about the progress of reopening the border between the two sides, given what has happened," Tam said.

Neither are we.

New Teachers to Be Tested on Basic Law, National Security

Yeung says teachers may be tested on national security law

Anyone considering going into teaching in Hong Kong will have to know the Basic Law because they will be tested on it, says the Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung Yun-hung. This would apply to teachers for kindergarten and semi-private schools.

During a radio show, Yeung said ever year there are between 1,000 to 2,000 fresh graduate teachers for primary and secondary schools who would need to pass the new Basic Law test ahead of the new academic year in September 2022.

Public school teachers have already taken the test

"In the first step, we aim to [implement] the test across government-aided schools, because there are about 1,000 to 2,000 new recruit teachers there every year," Yeung said, referring to institutions largely funded and run by charity organizations.

"Then, we will continue to expand [the scope] to direct subsidy scheme (DSS) schools and kindergartens, and in the long run, teachers in other areas as well."

DSS schools are semi-private schools that charge tuition and receive government subsidies.

Basically that means every teacher that works in a school that has ties with the government will have to pass this Basic Law test. Public school teachers are considered civil servants and so they have already taken the test, which is a pass/fail.

"We have to work on national education, national security education, and we hope to foster students' national identity. Teachers have a role in guiding students and we expect them to have a certain degree of understanding of the Basic Law," Yeung said on Friday.

Yeung doesn't think flag raising taxing on teachers

When asked whether the exam might be expanded to include topics such as the national security law, Yeung said it would not be ruled out. 

Meanwhile, the education minister didn't think holding the flag-raising ceremony every week would be too taxing on teachers' workload.

He said the bureau is providing training and explanations on why this has to be done, and in any event more than 95 percent of primary and secondary schools have flagpoles already.

Sounds like someone who is ticking off his checklist in a diligent, precise manner.

Carrie Lam Snubbed by Shenzhen?

The Canton Fair is the largest and oldest trade fair in China

Just days after her policy address highlighting the Northern Metropolis as a major infrastructure project to bring Hong Kong closer to the mainland and the Greater Bay Area, Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor was snubbed by Shenzhen officials today.

Earlier in the day she was in Guangzhou for the opening of the Canton Fair, the largest and oldest trade fair in China. She joined some 600 officials and business leaders from the mainland and overseas, with the event officiated by Premier Li Keqiang.

Premier Li Keqiang opened the Canton Fair

Lam met with Guangzhou Party Secretary Zhang Shoufu, city mayor Wen Guohui, and other local government officials, briefing them on her policy address.

Then later in the day she was supposed to meet with senior Shenzhen officials to brief them on the "Northern Metropolis" plan and how it would interface with Shenzhen and the Greater Bay Area. 

However, in a press release issued on Thursday night, the Hong Kong government said: "After [Lam's] arrival in Guangzhou, [she] noted that the meeting with the Shenzhen leaders in Shenzhen originally scheduled for [Thursday] afternoon had to be cancelled. The governments of the two places will fix another date for the meeting."

Lam met with Guangzhou officials

The Shenzhen side pulled out citing unexpected commitments... though one wonders why the last minute change as Chinese officials like everything to go according to schedule...

Sadly Lam had to go home empty handed, leaving behind Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po, who will attend a forum tomorrow in Guangzhou.