Insights from Hong Kong

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Book Review via Delaney Place

In China, Economics on 15 May 2013 at 8:59 AM

China in Ten Words by Yu Hua

Delaney Place offers a daily email review of books with the hope of spurring debate, discussion and learning. Sales of the book via their website earn charities a donation. In today’s update the book “China in Ten Words” is reviewed. Here author Yu Hua discusses the lopsided growth of China and the high social costs incurred.

“China’s model of growth is to spend 100 yuan to gain 10 yuan in increased GDP. Environmental degradation, moral collapse, the polarization of rich and poor, pervasive corruption — all these things are constantly exacerbating the contradictions in Chinese society.”

To read the review and to elarn more about these daily email updates, go here:

home | www.delanceyplace.com | eclectic excerpts delivered to your email every day from editor Richard Vague.

Thank you Nancy for the recommendation!

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Ripped from the Headlines: Hong Kong News Today

In Hong Kong on 14 May 2013 at 10:29 AM

Lawyer Michael Vidler discusses the verdict.

It appears that you cannot buy a hotel suite, or at least the ones offered by Cheung Kong at Apex Horizon. Leading the news however is a High Court decision allowing a transgender woman to marry her boyfriend. Here’s what’s making news in Hong Kong today.

SCMP

 

l   HK: HK$1.4 billion of sales at top hotel cancelled

-Watchdog rules that deals for Cheung Kong’s suites in Apex Horizon broke law

 

l   HK: Transsexual granted right to wed

-Landmark ruling by top court redefines word “woman” in marriage system, say legal experts

 

l   HK: Opinion divided as LegCo chief cuts off filibuster

-Pan-democrats outraged but pro-Beijing camp welcomes move

 

l   HK: Offshore tax havens “big contributor” to poverty

-Charity says top UK firms, including HSBC, are helping to siphon funds to places like Hong Kong

 

l   China: Sea drills to step up pressure on Manila

 

l   Social Media seen as new weapon in graft-busting

 

Sing Tao

 

l   Apex Horizon sales cancelled as SFC determines the sales were part of a “Collective Investment Scheme”

 

l   Court refuses to take up free-to-air TV license delay case, saying the review of the applications had not yet been reached

 

l   Jasper Tsang moves to end filibuster, legislators begin a war of words

 

l   Transsexual to be allowed to marry after winning lawsuit

 

Caixin

 

l   Telecoms industry trials value-added tax; profits to be hurt, tax burden clearly increases

 

l   Negative growth of central government finances for second month in a row

 

l   Credit Lyonnais Securities says that China’s debt level has reached historic highs

 

l   CBRC Vice-Chairman Cai E’Sheng retires; Yan Qingmin, Yang Jiacai are promoted

 

Xinhua

 

l   Government decides to remove Liu Tienan from his position

 

l   Regarding changing government responsibilities, Li Keqiang says that some powers must be let go

 

l   Li says that controlling food safety is about preventing crises

 

l   Central government finances once again experience negative growth

 

 

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Ripped from the Headlines: Hong Kong News Today

In Hong Kong on 13 May 2013 at 1:55 PM

Tai Po in New Territories

Residents in Tai Po are protesting approvals to build on undeveloped land. The sites had been used as illegal dumping grounds for construction waste. Residents say the rezoning from agriculture to apartments only encourages unscrupulous developers from “trashing” other sites int he hopes of claiming them for development. This and more are making headlines in Hong Kong today.

 

SCMP

 

l   HK: Meeting budget deadline impossible, Tsang warns

-Budget bill could not be passed by Wednesday even if the filibuster ended

 

l   HK: Advisers make U-turn on legal aid

-Council says there is no need for an independent authority

 

l   HK: Shadow banking extends to HK firms

-Mainland bosses, unable to secure loans from banks at home, turn to Hong Kong brokers, agree to pay high rates of interest

 

l   China: Graft-busters investigate top planning official

-Deputy Director of the NDRC Liu Tienan investigated for fraud and impropriety

 

l   China: Bureau ordered to stop compiling list of petitioners

-Officials put an end to a system of ranking grievances that led to illegal detentions

 

Sing Tao

 

l   Environmental groups oppose plan by developer to build on Tai Po agricultural land

 

l   John Tsang criticizes those responsible for the filibuster

-Warns of funding shortfall starting from next month

 

l   LegCo to hear plan to abolish 68 appointed district council seats in 2016

-Number of democratically elected seats to only rise by 11, opposition expected among the districts

 

Caixin

 

l   Institutions predict that liquidity will be tighter in the second half

 

l   Prominent economist Wu Jinglian warns that economy may come off its rails without more reform

-Warns of danger of two opposing systems [reforms and continued state direction]

 

l   NDRC’s Liu Tienan investigated for illegal behavior

 

 

 

Xinhua

 

l   NDRC’s Liu Tienan is under investigation for serious illegal behavior

 

l   Analysts believe that CSRC wished to send a strong signal by subjecting Ping An to a heavy fine

 

l   NDRC and Ministry of Industry and Information Technology will soon send written version of a plan to resolve overcapacity in Chinese industries to the State Council

 

l   IPOs may be restarted in the third quarter, later than expected

 

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