#Newspaper

Expat Families Flee Hong Kong After Double Whammy of Virus, Protests 

//“It’s just becoming an unstable environment to raise a child in,” Jacob said.

//An exodus by expats could further damage an economy already reeling from the unrest and the virus, with visitor numbers plunging and unemployment rising.

//Hong Kong residents who come from elsewhere play outsized roles in finance, law and other service industries that make the city a global business capital. About 690,000 foreigners and non-Hong Kong Chinese live in the Special Administrative Region, accounting for about 9.5% of the population, according to the 2016 census.

//The city’s population at the end of 2019 fell 0.1% from the midyear count, the first decline in almost two decades, according to government data released Tuesday. There was a net outflow of Hong Kong residents of 29,200 in 2019, compared with a net inflow of 23,000 in the 12-month period ending in the middle of 2019.

//The government’s announcement on Feb. 13 that schools would remain closed until mid-March -- at least -- will likely prompt more families to relocate

//while there’s strong demand for moves from Hong Kong, there is almost no interest in relocations to the city. Robert Chipman, Asian Tigers Group Hong Kong CEO’s been in his position for almost 20 years. “I’ve never seen anything like this,” he said.

//“If the specific needs of international schools cannot be rapidly addressed, this will very likely trigger decisions of families (not just expatriates) to leave Hong Kong in the coming weeks,”

//“A lot of people who are planning to move haven’t been in Hong Kong enough to see how resilient Hong Kong is,” she said. “If you have been here long enough, you realize Hong Kong will push through this as it has before.”

//Departures that become permanent could hurt the city’s competitiveness... “Once talent is lost from Hong Kong, it will be very hard to get it back,” she said.

Full Article: Bloomberg
https://bloom.bg/2PfazzJ

#Economy #Expat #FailedState #Coronavirus #SchoolSuspension

#COVID19
Health Prevention Centre: Third Wave COVID-19 Outbreak in Hong Kong; Secretary for Food and Hygiene Evades Question on School Suspension

On July 7, Hong Kong has discovered 14 new cases of COVID-19 infection, of which 9 are locally transmitted. The Health Prevention Centre warned of a community outbreak as the third wave of COVID-19 infection is taking place and the newly infected patients had visited many places in Hong Kong. Hong Kong has recorded a total of 1,299 cases so far.

The Secretary for Food and Hygiene Sophia Chan was asked if the government has plan to suspend schools. Chan, however, asked schools to make a decision, as the summer holidays are drawing near.

When asked if the new outbreak would affect the implementation of "health code" as used in China, Chan said they would have to discuss with Guangdong Province and Macau governments.

Sources:
https://www.881903.com/news/local/2345862
https://www.881903.com/news/local/2345870 #Jul7

#SophiaChan #SchoolSuspension #ThirdWave #Coronavirus