Hong Kong: SAR logs 4.19m travelers during mainland break

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region recorded 4.19 million cross-boundary travelers during the Chinese mainland’s five-day Labor Day holiday break from May 1-5. Among the 2.1 million inbound passengers, 36.5 percent, or more than 766,000, came from the mainland — a 22 percent year-on-year growth and close to the SAR government’s projections of about 800,000.

Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Kevin Yeung Yun-hung said that despite the heavy rain in early May, the holidays were expected to generate more than HK$2 billion ($225.7 million) in revenue for Hong Kong.

Macao: Labor Day to push gaming revenue to record high

Gaming revenue for the Macao Special Administrative Region in May is expected to be from 18.9 billion patacas ($2.35 billion) to 19.7 billion patacas — a new monthly high since the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 — according to industry experts. Experts point out that the high expectation mainly comes from the five-day Labor Day break, and intensified promotions and various activities organized by casino operators.

The city’s total casino revenue for 2024 is projected to be between 222.4 billion and 227.6 billion patacas, surpassing the government’s estimation of 216 billion patacas.

Guangzhou: Canton Fair ends with record transactions

The 135th China Import and Export Fair, also known as the Canton Fair, ended in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, on May 5, with the amount of offline export transactions reaching $24.7 billion, while online platform export transactions hit $3.03 billion, representing increases of 10.7 percent and 33.1 percent respectively from the previous fair. A total of 246,000 overseas buyers from 215 countries and regions participated in the offline fair, setting a record high.

Launched in 1957, the fair is hosted twice annually in the Guangdong provincial capital. As the nation’s longest-running international trading fixture, the Canton Fair is seen as China’s barometer for foreign trade.

Shenzhen: ‘City of Supercharging’ well on track after a year

The number of supercharging stations in Shenzhen surpassed that of the traditional gas stations by the end of last month and is expected to reach 1,000 by year-end, showcasing the city’s commitment to sustainable transportation. Unlike conventional charging facilities that typically take several hours, the use of supercharging stations enables charging of up to at least 80 percent in 10 minutes or less.

The “City of Supercharging” initiative can be traced back to June 2023, when China’s tech hub rolled out its first fully liquid-cooled supercharging demonstration station. Since then, Shenzhen has made significant progress in establishing a network of supercharging services, with its stations strategically located in high-traffic areas such as commercial complexes, bus stations and industrial parks.

Zhuhai: First low-altitude air route to Shenzhen launched

The first low-altitude air route between Zhuhai and Shenzhen was launched on April 30, shortening the travel time between the two cities to 20 minutes, compared with about two hours by car.  

The service provides passengers with helicopter transportation between Zhuhai Jiuzhou Airport and Shenzhen Nantou Heliport, with one round trip daily and each trip carrying up to five passengers. The service is suitable for business travel, tourism and sightseeing. Passengers can enjoy panoramic views of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge and the Zhuhai Grand Theater.

The operator has also launched other services, such as air tours and private customized services, further enriching the comprehensive transportation network system in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

Foshan: Year’s first quarter sees launch of 49 key projects  

Construction work on 49 major projects, which account for about half of those under Foshan’s annual plan for 2024, began in the first quarter of this year.

Most of the projects cover the manufacturing industry, with emphasis on innovation and the application of new technology. They include motorcycle production, research and development of lithium-ion batteries, and the construction of a health food production base, as well as a science and technology park. Investment in each of the projects ranged from 100 million yuan ($13.85 million) to 1 billion yuan.

Huizhou: Property market gets a boost with sweeteners for buyers

Huizhou authorities have implemented six measures to ease restrictions on property purchases and promote the development of the real estate market.

A key move is the scrapping of a regulation that new homes should be held for a minimum of three years before they can be transferred. The measures also cover convenient arrangements to change apartments, differentiated loan offers and other forms of financial support for home purchasers.

About 10,000 consumption vouchers valued at up to 10,000 yuan ($1,385) each are also offered to new home-buyers who have completed online signing and filing of transactions, as well as tax payments.

Dongguan: Green buses set to expand their reach to BRI markets

A total of 83 domestically made new-energy buses, with a total value exceeding 90 million yuan ($12.47 million), left Dongguan Port on May 4, for the Port of Constanta in Romania, which is among the economies taking part in the Belt and Road Initiative. It was the fourth time the manufacturer, Zhuhai-based Zonson Smart Auto, has exported buses to BRI economies via Dongguan.

Reports said the buses will be used in Constanta to help promote the green transition of the city’s public transportation.

Zhongshan: New expressway link with Jiangmen enters service

A transportation hub connecting Zhongshan’s western district expressway and the Zhongshan-Jiangmen expressway went into operation on April 29.

The facility links major transportation routes in the west of Zhongshan with the neighboring city of Jiangmen. It makes it more convenient for residents in Zhongshan’s towns of Xiaolan and Guzhen to travel to Jiangmen and vice versa.

The Zhongshan-Jiangmen expressway is expected to be expanded to the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Link this year, marking a step further in easing traffic congestion in the Pearl River Delta.

Jiangmen: 2.25m visitors welcomed during the holiday period

Jiangmen recorded about 2.25 million visitor arrivals during the Labor Day holiday from May 1-5 — an increase of more than 10 percent from the same period last year. The tourism boom lifted the sector’s revenue to 1.3 billion yuan ($180.1 million), a year-on-year increase of 6.58 percent.

Capitalizing on its tourism resources, including tea culture, temple fairs, and its intangible cultural heritage, Jiangmen hosted nearly 300 events during the holidays. Sports events like roller skating, volleyball and athletics were held to attract tourists.

The average occupancy rate of 30 of the city’s major hotels stood at 83.44 percent during the five-day holiday break, with several business hotels reaching a maximum occupancy rate of 100 percent.

Zhaoqing: Four key projects were launched in high-tech zone

Zhaoqing started four key infrastructure projects at its Jinli High-tech Zone on May 4. The projects are the reconstruction of National Highway G324, linking the city with Foshan, an industrial port that aims to become the world’s largest comprehensive hub for the research; manufacturing, exhibition and the sale of hotel supplies with billions of yuan in investments; a new kindergarten providing 450 preschool education locations; and a commercial complex. Before Jinli’s establishment as a high-tech zone in 2020, it was renowned for its exceptional production of construction hardware.