South African businesses are treating water security as a core continuity risk as unreliable municipal supply, ageing infrastructure increase operational risk across affected municipal networks and major cities. Companies are responding by expanding on-site storage, drilling boreholes where viable, installing treatment systems, recycling wastewater and improving consumption monitoring. The shift resembles the earlier move towards private power resilience, with businesses seeking alternatives to dependence on a single […]
South Korea’s central bank began a pilot of a 24-hour won settlement network on Monday, advancing preparations to give overseas investors broader access to the country’s currency market from next year.
The Bank of Korea said the Bank of Korea Won International Wire Network started trial operations at 9am local time with KB Kookmin Bank, Woori Bank, Hana Bank and Shinhan Bank participating. Two of the banks completed transactions worth about 1.4 billion won during the initial test, according to the central bank.
Full operation is scheduled for January 2027, when foreign financial institutions are expected to gain wider access to the network. The system is designed to allow won payments and settlement during the business hours of major overseas financial centres rather than limiting activity to South Korea’s domestic banking day.
Under the planned framework, offshore investors will be able to trade the won with other foreign participants using accounts opened with Registered Foreign Institutions for KRW Business, known as RFI-Ks, in their home markets. This is intended to reduce the need for investors to open and operate separate accounts directly with financial institutions in South Korea.
The network will function continuously from 9am on each business day until 9am the following day, effectively providing round-the-clock settlement on weekdays. It will remain closed on weekends and public holidays. Foreign banks are also due to participate in the trial, although the Bank of Korea has not specified when they will enter the testing phase.
The central bank said it would monitor the pilot, refine operating arrangements and expand participation before the system moves into full service. It expects the new infrastructure to improve foreign investors’ access to won settlement and support wider international use of the currency.
The trial follows South Korea’s move in July to extend onshore dollar-won trading to a 24-hour schedule. That change removed the previous gap between Seoul trading hours and active periods in major centres such as London and New York, allowing transactions to continue through the global trading day.
Authorities have paired the longer trading window with changes to settlement arrangements because extended dealing hours alone do not remove operational barriers if investors cannot complete payments outside domestic banking hours. The new network is intended to address that mismatch by keeping settlement infrastructure available while overseas markets are active.
The initiative forms part of a broader programme to open South Korea’s foreign-exchange market and make local assets easier for global institutions to access. Seoul has also been seeking improvements in market infrastructure as it pursues developed-market classification for its equities from MSCI, whose accessibility assessments examine areas including foreign-exchange convertibility, investment flows and operational arrangements.
South Korea has already introduced the RFI framework to permit eligible overseas financial institutions to participate directly in the domestic foreign-exchange market. The settlement network extends that approach by enabling those institutions to hold and transfer won through designated accounts linked to the central bank’s payment infrastructure.
The Bank of Korea has also been modernising its core settlement systems. Its 2025 payment and settlement systems report, released last week, said operating hours for BOK-Wire+ were extended in March and that work continued on the international won network and the adoption of the ISO 20022 financial messaging standard.
The central bank has said the international network will use real-time gross settlement, a structure in which transactions are settled individually and continuously rather than being netted for later settlement. That approach is intended to limit credit risk during the payment process while supporting cross-border compatibility.
Preparations have included linked-system testing and business-continuity planning before the scheduled commercial launch. The authorities have also revised foreign-exchange regulations to accommodate the wider use of overseas won accounts and settlement channels.
Asian share markets advanced on Monday as technology stocks rallied on continuing demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure, while crude oil prices fell as traders assessed stronger-than-expected energy flows from the Middle East.
South Korea and Taiwan led the regional gains, reflecting renewed buying in semiconductor companies tied to expanding demand for data centres, memory chips and advanced computing. South Korea’s Kospi rose about 1.4%, while Taiwan’s benchmark gained around 1% and reached a three-month high. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan added roughly 0.9%.
Chinese blue-chip shares were also firmer, rising about 0.2%, while Japan’s cash market was closed for the Silver Week holiday. Nikkei futures nevertheless edged 0.2% higher. Trading across parts of the region was thinner than usual because Japanese markets will remain shut through Wednesday.
The strength in Asian technology shares followed continued investor focus on the capital spending required to support generative AI and cloud computing. Samsung Electronics rose sharply in Seoul, while Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co gained in Taipei, reinforcing the technology-heavy tone across major regional bourses.
US equity futures also pointed higher during Asian trading. S&P 500 futures gained about 0.4% and Nasdaq futures rose 0.6%, while European futures indicated a firmer opening, with EUROSTOXX 50 and German DAX contracts advancing.
Oil prices moved in the opposite direction. Brent crude fell about 1.7% to just above $102 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate dropped close to 2% to around $98.50. Both benchmarks had already weakened at the end of last week.
The decline reflected signs that more crude and other energy cargoes were moving through the Gulf despite continuing disruption linked to the conflict in the region. Data from Kpler showed Saudi Arabian crude exports recovering to just above 4 million barrels per day so far in September after dropping to about 2.4 million barrels per day in August.
Saudi shipments through the Strait of Hormuz have increased after disruption to the East-West pipeline and reduced flows through the Red Sea export hub of Yanbu. JPMorgan analysts estimated that total Middle East oil flows averaged 17.1 million barrels per day over the previous 10 days, suggesting that physical supply had proved more resilient than traders initially feared.
Energy markets were also monitoring the possibility of diplomatic engagement this week, which helped reduce part of the geopolitical risk premium built into crude prices. However, tensions remained high after further attacks involving Saudi targets, leaving traders cautious about assuming that supply risks had disappeared.
Bond markets remained another constraint on risk appetite. The US two-year Treasury yield was around 4.76%, after rising sharply over the previous two weeks. Futures markets were pricing a greater-than-even chance of another Federal Reserve rate increase in October following the central bank’s hawkish guidance last week.
Higher borrowing costs have complicated the outlook for equities even as technology stocks continue to attract capital. Investors are balancing the earnings potential created by AI-related investment against the prospect that restrictive monetary policy could persist as central banks attempt to contain inflation.
The US 10-year Treasury yield was close to 5%, keeping pressure on rate-sensitive assets and supporting the dollar. The currency was little changed around 157 yen, with investors alert to the possibility of intervention by Japan’s authorities during the holiday-thinned session.
The yen had strengthened sharply on Friday after Japanese authorities conducted rate checks in the foreign-exchange market. The euro was broadly steady near $1.148 after losing ground against the dollar over the previous week.
Gold prices were little changed to slightly lower as higher bond yields offset safe-haven demand generated by Middle East tensions. Copper, meanwhile, remained supported by signs of stronger demand from China and constrained inventories.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was broadly flat, lagging the technology-led advances elsewhere in the region. India’s benchmark Sensex traded higher during the session, while Hong Kong shares also advanced as investors continued to favour large technology and internet companies.
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Dubai Electronic Security Centre has unveiled SARAAB, an artificial intelligence model built to detect deepfake videos, presenting the Emirati-developed system at GISEC Global 2026 as authorities intensify efforts to counter AI-enabled cyber fraud and manipulation. The open-source model was developed entirely by a team at the Dubai Electronic Security Centre, or DESC, and is designed to analyse video frame by frame for signs […]
Gold prices were little changed on Monday, holding close to a one-week high as investors balanced persistent Middle East tensions against expectations that US interest rates could remain elevated for longer. Spot gold was almost flat at about $4,379.74 an ounce in early trade, while US gold futures for December delivery slipped 0.1 per cent to $4,419.40. The metal had climbed to a one-week high on Friday […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Qatar’s prime minister has called for Gulf states to act together to restore regional stability and help secure a settlement between the United States and Iran, arguing that the war should force governments to rethink how security is organised across the Gulf. “We are hoping this war is a wake-up call for everyone,” Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said on Sunday at the […]
HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 21 September 2026 – Phancy Group Co., Ltd. (“Phancy” or “the Group”, stock code: 6682.HK), a leading full-stack enterprise-AI cloud services platform, ranked first overall in the latest 2026 China AI Computing Resource Management Platform Technology Capability Assessment, published by International Data Corporation (“IDC”), a global technology intelligence firm.
The assessment evaluated multiple leading AI computing resource management platform providers in China and noted Phancy’s industry-leading technological maturity across heterogeneous accelerator compatibility and adaptation, large-scale cluster operations, and delivery in hybrid cloud environments. Drawing on its accumulated capabilities in heterogeneous computing resource management, fine-grained GPU virtualization and agent-oriented computing services, Phancy received full scores and outperformed the industry benchmark in four out of six evaluated dimensions[1].
According to the IDC report, as AI moves into large-scale deployment, the growing adoption of AI agents is reshaping cloud infrastructure. In the meantime, AI infrastructure is evolving beyond basic computing capacity to become a core part of the enterprise technology stack, supporting digital and intelligent transformation.
Dr. Dai Wenyuan, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Phancy, said: “The AI industry is moving beyond the ‘model race’ and entering a new phase of large-scale deployment. For enterprises, the real challenge is no longer whether they can access large language models, but about how to translate agentic AI capabilities into sustained productivity while keeping costs under control and operations stable. IDC’s assessment reflects the growing importance of unified management, flexible scheduling and fine-grained operations for heterogeneous computing resources. Phancy will continue to advance its capabilities in heterogeneous computing resource scheduling and agent infrastructure, helping more enterprises unlock the value of AI with greater efficiency, cost-effectiveness and reliability.”
Five Core Capabilities Behind Phancy’s Vendor-Neutral Unified Management Platform
At the core of Phancy’s offering is vendor-neutral unified management software that supports large-scale training and high-concurrency inference for mainstream models across chips from over ten leading vendors[2]. Its core technological capabilities include:
Code-compatible multi-chip virtualization: Phancy supports the partitioning of a single AI accelerator across multiple workloads, enabling mainstream frameworks and inference engines, including PyTorch, TensorFlow, vLLM and SGLang, to run without changes to application code. Resource quotas help maintain stability when multiple workloads run concurrently.
Three-tier resource pools and intelligent workload scheduling: Phancy’s platform provides three types of resource pools: dedicated, shared and overcommitted pool. Resources can be intelligently scheduled based on four dimensions (workload priority, hardware topology, real-time load and resource requirements), enabling large-scale training and high-concurrency inference workloads to run on the same infrastructure.
AI gateway and dual-track metering: The AI gateway provides unified management of model routing, API calls and audit activities. Usage is measured through both accelerator hours and token consumption, helping enterprises track costs and resource utilization from the perspectives of both resource consumption and model usage.
Agent-oriented computing services: Phancy’s platform turns heterogeneous computing resources into standardized services that AI agents can call on demand. These services support partitioning, reuse and elastic scaling. Combined with intelligent routing through the AI gateway, this accommodates the frequent calls and fluctuating workloads associated with AI agents, while token quotas and circuit-breaking mechanisms also help enterprises manage usage risks and costs when predefined limits are exceeded.
Operations and maintenance for heterogeneous computing resources: Phancy’s platform provides end-to-end observability spanning nodes, accelerators, workloads and model services. It supports fault isolation, workload rescheduling and private deployment in environments without public internet access, helping enterprises improve operational efficiency across complex heterogeneous computing environments.
The report highlighted a use case in which a Chinese policy bank significant improved resource utilization by using Phancy’s three-tier resource pool architecture to manage computing resources across three data centers in two locations, while also enabling a smooth business migration.
Looking ahead, Phancy will continue to advance its AI computing resource management platform as AI infrastructure shifts from traditional “cloud + AI” architectures toward greater cloud-native, agent-oriented integration. The Group will continue to help enterprises manage computing resources more efficiently, deploy AI across a wider range of production environments, and turn AI into sustainable business productivity at scale.
[1] The assessment evaluated platforms across six dimensions: computing resource management, computing service management, compute operations, Technical architecture, business scenario support, and delivery services. According to the IDC report, the findings are intended to help enterprises evaluate and select the platforms best suited to their needs.
[2] Phancy’s platform now supports accelerators from more than ten vendors, including Ascend, Hygon DCU, Cambricon, Iluvatar CoreX, MetaX, Moore Threads, Kunlunxin, Enflame, T-Head and Biren Technology.
Hashtag: #Phancy
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
About Phancy Group
Phancy Group (6682.HK) is a leading full-stack AI cloud services platform, providing comprehensive solutions for the AI 2.0 era. Our offerings include SageAIOS, HAMi vGPU and ModelHub XC, delivering efficient and scalable AI infrastructure with end-to-end capabilities. We provide a complete solution from heterogeneous compute resource management and optimization to the deployment of intelligent agent models. These solutions empower digital transformation across a wide range of industries, supporting our vision of building a large-scale and efficient “Token Factory.”
Guided by the mission of “AI for Everyone” and positioned as the “Navigator of AI,” Phancy Group is committed to becoming a global leader in Artificial General Intelligence.
European electricity prices for the coming winter have risen to their highest levels since the 2022 energy crisis, with German January contracts trading above €180 a megawatt-hour as gas supply concerns and geopolitical disruption tighten the market across the continent now. The German benchmark on the European Energy Exchange is more than 60 per cent higher than a year ago, signalling growing concern over the cost of […]
North Korean cyber operators posing as recruiters have compromised at least 30,000 devices in more than 100 countries, using fraudulent job interviews to infect technology professionals and steal cryptocurrency, authorities from four countries have disclosed. The campaign, attributed to a group tracked as WaterPlum and widely known as Contagious Interview, targeted web designers, software engineers, freelancers and specialists in cryptocurrency, blockchain and Web3 technologies between about December […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai President Donald Trump returned unexpectedly to the White House on Saturday after cutting short a weekend at Camp David, as a Houthi missile attack on Riyadh pushed the renewed Saudi-Yemen conflict into the kingdom’s capital. The White House gave no explanation for Trump’s early return, which came a day before he had been scheduled to leave the presidential retreat in Maryland. The timing […]
By K Raveendran Donald Trump now possesses one of the most formidable economic weapons available to an American president against countries sustaining Russia’s energy revenues. Yet, the decision on how aggressively to wield it is complicated by a contradiction that Washington cannot easily escape: squeezing Russian oil out of the international market could also push […]
Hong Kong has laid out a five-year programme to strengthen its established economic pillars while building new growth engines, with a gold-led commodity trading ecosystem among the centrepieces of its strategy through 2030.
Chief Executive John Lee’s 2026 Policy Address and the city’s first Five-Year Plan for Economic and Social Development set out measures covering finance, trade, shipping, aviation, innovation and technology, alongside efforts to attract capital, companies and skilled workers. The government said the programme is designed to reinforce Hong Kong’s international competitiveness and support longer-term economic development.
Gold will serve as the entry point for a broader commodity trading ecosystem. Hong Kong plans to formally launch its central clearing and settlement system for gold in the first quarter of 2027, following trial operations that began in July. The system is intended to support trading that meets international standards and strengthen links among clearing, settlement, storage and physical delivery.
Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing will announce details this year of new renminbi-denominated, physically settled gold futures contracts. The government also plans to explore tax concessions for qualifying activities across the gold and commodity trading chain, with proposals expected to be put to the Legislative Council for consultation next year.
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority is studying whether the Exchange Fund should moderately increase its gold holdings and participate in local spot and futures markets. Existing physical gold inventories could gradually be transferred to designated vaults appointed by the Hong Kong Precious Metals Central Clearing Company.
Authorities also plan to expand storage and related infrastructure. Since the London Metal Exchange added Hong Kong to its global warehousing network in 2025, approved storage space has exceeded 60,000 square metres and inventories have risen above 20,000 tonnes of metal. More LME-approved warehouses are planned for the Northern Metropolis.
A half-rate tax concession for physical commodity trading is also being pursued to encourage traders to establish or enlarge operations in the city. A joint working group led by the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury will examine market opportunities and possible collaboration between exchanges.
The wider financial strategy seeks to strengthen Hong Kong’s role as an offshore renminbi business hub and an international centre for asset management and risk management. The government plans to deepen green and digital finance, widen financing channels for technology companies and strengthen trade finance, supply-chain finance, clearing, settlement and risk-management services.
A proposed Innovation and Technology Industry-Oriented Fund will receive HK$10 billion in government funding and is expected to reach at least HK$40 billion when market capital is included. Priority areas include life and health technology, artificial intelligence and robotics, semiconductors and smart devices, digitalisation, and sustainable development.
The five-year plan also calls for greater emphasis on high-value maritime services rather than relying mainly on traditional port logistics. Measures include reforms to ship registration, support for ship financing and marine insurance, and further development of maritime arbitration and other professional services.
Hong Kong also intends to build a broader aviation industry ecosystem. Plans include developing aircraft-parts processing and trading, participating in research and certification connected with domestically developed aircraft, and expanding sustainable aviation fuel supply chains across the Greater Bay Area. Authorities aim for sustainable aviation fuel to account for 1% to 3% of fuel used by departing flights at Hong Kong International Airport in 2030.
Trade policy will focus on digitalisation, diversification and higher-value supply-chain services. The government wants more companies to use Hong Kong for international orders, foreign-exchange transactions, treasury operations, trade finance and supply-chain management, while attracting regional and international headquarters.
The plan places innovation alongside the traditional pillars, with support directed towards artificial intelligence, robotics, life sciences, microelectronics and advanced manufacturing. It also identifies aerospace technology, marine technology, quantum technology and embodied intelligence as fields for longer-term development.
Spain’s data protection authority has disclosed its first notified personal-data breach in which an artificial intelligence agent allegedly carried out several stages of an intrusion, including vulnerability discovery, data modification and access to billing records. The Agencia Española de Protección de Datos said the incident involved an agent using a known large language model and marked a significant shift in the operational use of AI in cyberattacks. […]
The European Union has urged the United States to reconsider its decision to deny visas to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and other Palestinian officials seeking to attend the United Nations General Assembly in New York, intensifying diplomatic pressure on Washington before the gathering. Anouar El Anouni, a spokesman for the European External Action Service, said on Saturday that the bloc regretted the extension of the visa denial […]
HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 19 September 2026 – Hong Kong’s Chief Executive John Lee rolled out various measures to develop Hong Kong’s key economic centres when he unveiled the First Five-Year Plan for Economic and Social Development of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) (2026-2030) and his fifth Policy Address on September 16.
Under Hong Kong’s First Five-Year Plan, Hong Kong will focus on strengthening the four centres, developing the hub for high-calibre talent, consolidating and enhancing its competitive edge as an international city.
Hong Kong’s status as world-renowned international financial, maritime and trade centres as well as an international aviation hub underpin the city’s high-quality development and provide a firm foundation for the city’s long-term stability and prosperity.
“We will consolidate and enhance Hong Kong’s status as an international financial centre, and stay committed to our global positioning,” Mr Lee said. “Hong Kong will deepen the development of its global offshore Renminbi business and capital market, develop an international asset and wealth management centre and international risk management centre, enhance the securities market and expand fixed income and commodity trading.”
Hong Kong has become the world’s largest cross‑boundary wealth management centre this year, and the HKSAR Government will continue to develop a more attractive asset and wealth management ecosystem, Mr Lee said.
Hong Kong will develop a commodity trading ecosystem with gold as an entry point by driving the development of the clearing system, storage, supply, and infrastructure related to gold trading. The city’s central clearing and settlement system for gold will be officially launched in the first quarter of 2027.
“The significance of the First Five-Year Plan for Hong Kong lies in a mindset shift; we must plan Hong Kong’s financial development with a longer-term vision and broader perspective to adapt with flexibility and diversity,” said Christopher Hui, Hong Kong’s Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury. “Each of our initiatives centres around one objective, which is to elevate Hong Kong from a ‘corridor of capital’ to a ‘destination of choice’.”
Hong Kong was ranked the world’s fifth‑largest entity in merchandise trade in 2025. The HKSAR Government announced plans to consolidate and enhance Hong Kong’s status as an international trade centre, playing a greater role in the high‑level opening up of the Chinese Mainland.
Since the Task Force on Supporting Mainland Enterprises in Going Global was established last October, it has provided assistance, including listing and raising capital in Hong Kong, aligning with overseas standards, acquiring industry certifications and fulfilling compliance requirements for more than 340 Mainland enterprises.
The Task Force will strengthen collaboration with professional organisations to train talent for the GoGlobal initiative and enhance professional services, among other areas.
“In alignment with the National 15th Five-Year Plan’s call to advocate and practise true multilateralism, the First Five-Year Plan proposes to continue expanding international economic and trade network,” said Algernon Yau, Hong Kong’s Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development.
“We will actively forge free trade agreements and investment agreements with economies that are of development potential or strategic locations. Meanwhile, we will expand our network of overseas offices, and leverage the combined networks of our overseas Economic and Trade Offices, InvestHK, and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council offices globally to deepen overseas ties and step up trade and investment promotion.”
As an international maritime centre, Hong Kong has ranked fourth globally in maritime comprehensive strength for seven consecutive years. The Five-Year Plan will drive a “volume to value” transformation of the Hong Kong Port, capitalising on its strengths in high value‑added maritime services, to develop Hong Kong into a “Global Maritime Capital”.
To promote high value-added services, the industry will develop “Finance + Shipping”.
Taking advantage of the city’s well‑established maritime finance, insurance and maritime arbitration under common law, Hong Kong will build an integrated ecosystem under which Hong Kong‑invested enterprises adopt Hong Kong law, take out Hong Kong insurance and choose for arbitration to be seated in Hong Kong.
Regarding aviation, Hong Kong’s passenger throughput recorded a year‑on‑year increase of 15% last year, to 61 million, with flights to over 220 destinations. The city’s air cargo throughput reached 5.07 million tonnes, making its airport the world’s busiest cargo airport for the 15th year since 2010.
To strengthen development as international aviation hub, Hong Kong will expand its aviation network, and diversify business opportunities.
The HKSAR Government will continue to take the initiative to visit South America, Africa, Central Asia, the Middle East and the Caucasus to expedite the conclusion of new air services agreements and the expansion of traffic rights, thereby assisting the industry in exploring new passenger and cargo sources.
As for building Hong Kong as an international innovation and technology centre, the HKSAR Government will step up its efforts to promote artificial intelligence (AI) applications across various trades, and continue to strike a balance between encouraging innovation and protecting security, thereby enhancing Hong Kong’s international competitiveness in AI development.
In alignment with the national strategic technology areas, Hong Kong will focus on core technologies such as life and health, AI and robotics, microelectronics, new energy, advanced manufacturing and new materials. It will also continue to raise the ratio of Total Domestic Expenditure on Innovation Activities to Gross Domestic Product, striving to reach 3% after 2030.
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Cross-border investment in commercial property rose 56 per cent to $71.8 billion in the first half of 2026, with stronger activity in Asia and Europe helping international deals outpace the broader recovery in global real estate transactions. Data from property consultancy JLL showed overseas investment into Asian property quadrupled to $19.3 billion, while cross-border investment in Europe increased 31 per cent to $39.9 […]
A United Nations-backed fact-finding mission has found reasonable grounds to believe United States forces committed war crimes in two February strikes in Iran, including an attack on a primary school in Minab that killed more than 150 people. The Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran said the strikes amounted to indiscriminate attacks that caused civilian deaths, injuries and damage to civilian objects. Its findings were submitted to […]
Westinghouse Electric is seeking a valuation above $50 billion for a planned US initial public offering, people familiar with the preparations said, as the nuclear technology group moves towards a potential public filing as early as October. The proposed valuation has not been announced by Westinghouse or its owners and could change as preparations advance. The number of shares to be sold, the price range and the […]
Saudi Arabia has sold about 60 million barrels of crude for loading in September and October from Ras Tanura, with cargoes crossing the Strait of Hormuz before being transferred ship-to-ship off Oman’s Sohar port, according to multiple trade sources. The sales are lifting Saudi Aramco’s crude exports from Gulf terminals back to an average of about 1 million to 1.5 million barrels a day, around or slightly […]
HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 18 September 2026 – Hong Kong’s Chief Executive, John Lee, took part in a radio phone-in programme this morning (September 18), fielding questions about the First Five-Year Plan for Economic and Social Development of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) (2026-2030) and his fifth Policy Address, which were unveiled on Wednesday (September 16).
Quizzed on various aspects of the HKSAR Government’s new blueprint for economic and social development, Mr Lee said the inaugural Five-Year Plan set out five main objectives for Hong Kong: better livelihoods for all; breakthroughs in economic development; expanding global competitiveness and influence; faster development of the Northern Metropolis; and to better serve the country.
On expanding global competitiveness, Mr Lee said the Government would make good use of its international networks.
“The strength of Hong Kong is its international status, and we have been emphasising on how we ensure the internationalism or the ‘internationalness’ of Hong Kong. We are expanding to cover every part of the world where we can reach,” Mr Lee said, noting that the Government had offices, including Economic and Trade Offices, and the offices of Invest Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, in countries around the world. “I’m very serious about expanding our network.”
Since taking office four years ago, Mr Lee has led delegation visits to regions, including ASEAN Member States, the Middle East, and recently Central Asia. “And my colleagues really go more often to different parts of the world, so for South Africa, and also Kenya and these are the very popular African places that my colleagues go to visit,” he added.
To boost Hong Kong’s influence in overseas markets, Mr Lee highlighted the example of the International Organization for Mediation (IOMed).
“We are very proud to have the headquarters of IOMed set up in Hong Kong, because this is an organisation which is of United Nations status,” Mr Lee said. He added that an international office would be set up in Hong Kong under the global network of corruption prevention authorities. “Hong Kong is an international city, which not just is very good at doing business, but is exercising its responsibility as a global participator, and also, we really can contribute.”
“And this is also very important, because it just means how, in different areas, Hong Kong is doing very well, and also very connected to the world. And not just being a member, but being a contributor, being really a driver, and we want to share our good experiences, and also learn from other experiences.”
The First Five-Year Plan and the 2026 Policy Address placed strong focus on speeding up the development of the Northern Metropolis (NM) project, so as to boost long-term economic development, improve people’s livelihoods and help the city to further integrate into overall national development.
“The Northern Metropolis represents about one third of our geographical area. So it is a big piece of land that gives us new opportunities. An opportunity to upgrade ourselves, both from the accommodation angle as well as development angle,” Mr Lee said.
Beyond the city’s core economic strengths such as finance, shipping and trade, Mr Lee said the NM would provide room for diversifying local industries, creating new jobs and a brighter future as more development opportunities emerge from different kinds of industries as well as closer alignment with national development.
“The NM is actually mentioned in our country’s 15th Five-Year Plan. That means it is not just a Hong Kong development, it has been elevated as a state-driven project. And with the elevation of position, we will have to work hard. And I am sure that the Central Government will also help us to ensure that this will be a success story.
“And so, doing the Five-Year Plan has this advantage. We will capitalise on all the opportunities that the state can give us. At the same time, we will remain very fully connected to the international world. So we have the beauty of both worlds.”
Asked about Hong Kong’s approach to adopting artificial intelligence (AI), Mr Lee stressed the need to take advantage of the opportunities brought by AI, while also protecting against the risks of AI, in areas such as crime, fraud, sexual abuse and potential negative impacts on younger people.
“Last year, we talk very much about how we should benefit from the application of AI, how it will do things faster, and how it will also do things more correctly,” Mr Lee said.
“So while we develop and ensure people understand and use it, we also need to tell everybody the potential risks that it will bring.”
Mr Lee said the Government would create a post of Commissioner for AI, with a mandate that he is “the chief for the whole government, in terms of AI. It means setting the policy. It means coordinating resources, identify problems for them, setting the best practices, issuing guidelines. And also, very importantly, is developing AI for the whole of government with a view to, after we have developed our experience, let the world also learn from these experiences.”
Matein Khalid I never thought a routine telegraphed 0.25% a rate hike at a FOMC conclave would make September 16, 2026 one of the scariest days in my investing career, right up there with September 15, 2008 (the Tuesday Lehman died), September 11, 2001 the day the WTC Feng Shui twin sentinels of Manhattan died or Black Wednesday September 15 1992, when my Magyar idol George Soros […]
Saudi Arabia’s King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre has signed a cooperation agreement with the Refaq Association in Hail Region to provide monthly financial assistance, clothing and shopping vouchers for orphans in Djibouti. The agreement, signed on Thursday at KSrelief’s headquarters in Riyadh, provides monthly support of $80 for each participating orphan, intended to reduce the financial pressure on families caring for them. It also includes […]
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has ruled out sending troops or military assets into the US-led war against Iran, drawing a firm line around Seoul’s involvement despite pressure from President Donald Trump. Lee said at a news conference on Friday that South Korea would not make any deployment that could pull the country into combat. “There will be no dispatch of troops that will lead to […]
OpenAI chief Sam Altman, Anthropic chief Dario Amodei and xAI owner Elon Musk have publicly backed a slower pace for frontier artificial intelligence development, an unusual alignment among fierce rivals as safety concerns intensify and Altman says OpenAI will not pursue a stock-market listing in 2026. The convergence followed an essay by Amodei calling for the industry to “pace the frontier” rather than continue scaling advanced models […]
https://www.brandhk.gov.hk/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/brand-hong-kong/
https://x.com/Brand_HK/
https://www.facebook.com/brandhk.isd
https://www.instagram.com/brandhongkong
