〈The Standard, Nov 9,2024〉Hong Kong's property market gained traction yesterday and Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said the market may return to the state prior to the launch of property cooling measures, thanks to a strong local banking system, healthy loan levels and eased rules for mortgage loans.
Chan said both land and housing supplies are adequate in the city and can provide sufficient room for adjustment in the event of any market fluctuation.
Earlier in the policy address, the mortgage loan-to-value ratio was eased to 70 percent, enabling home buyers to borrow more from the banks.
〈Hong Kong Business, Nov 8,2024〉Demand for offices in Hong Kong softened in Q3, with net absorption falling to -0.02 million square meters.
According to Colliers, Q3 marked the first period of negative net absorption after four consecutive positive quarters.
Apart from net absorption, rentals also fell in Q3, dropping 2.9% QoQ and 6.3% YoY. With lower rentals, the vacancy rate rose to 16.9%.
According to Colliers, Hong Kong’s vacancy levels will likely rise as over 0.3 million square meters of new office space come online in 2025.
〈Asian Post, Nov 7,2024〉Homebuyers are showing renewed interest in the residential market, following recent US Federal interest rate cuts and flexible housing measures announced in the policy address according to CBRE.
Developers are actively responding by launching new residential projects to capture this demand, with an emphasis on increasing transaction volume over pushing prices higher. This aligns with CBRE's earlier forecast that primary sales are likely to rebound in the coming months.
Lower price levels and anticipated decrease in financing costs are also expected to attract yield-seeking investors, further supporting demand in the residential sector. CBRE forecasts a likely increase in secondary market transactions as well, driven by these favourable conditions.
〈Hong Kong Business, Nov 6,2024〉Foreign currency reserve assets slipped from US$422.8b in September to US$421.4b in October.
According to the Monetary Authority, the reserve assets represent over five times the currency in circulation or about 39% of Hong Kong dollar M3.
“There were no unsettled foreign exchange contracts in end-October and September 2024,” added the Monetary Authority.
〈RTHK News, Nov 7,2024〉Beijing's top official on Hong Kong affairs emphasised the important role of the business sector in boosting the city's economy and improving people's livelihood, according to Hong Kong Productivity Council chairman Sunny Tan.
The director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, Xia Baolong, met representatives of the Hong Kong business sector in Shenzhen on Friday, with Chief Executive John Lee also in attendance.
Speaking on a radio programme on Saturday, Tan, who was at the closed-door meeting, said Xia urged the business sector to take the initiative to discover new business opportunities and new markets.
