logo
Top Beijing official Xia Baolong arrives in Hong Kong for 5-day visit

Top Beijing official Xia Baolong arrives in Hong Kong for 5-day visit

A senior Beijing official overseeing Hong Kong affairs has arrived in the city for a five-day visit in which he is expected to meet representatives from the education and business sectors before giving a keynote speech on national security.
Xia Baolong, director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, arrived in the city at around 5pm on Wednesday via the Shenzhen Bay border crossing, with sources saying he will attend a dinner hosted by Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu in the evening.
Xia's trip, which follows a seven-day inspection visit he made to Hong Kong in February last year, is mostly to attend a key forum on Saturday marking the fifth anniversary of the imposition of the national security law, according to insiders.
A source said the trip would help the central government understand Hong Kong's overall situation and propose an optimal plan for the city's better integration with mainland China's next-stage development. Beijing is finalising its 15th five-year plan for national economic and social development.
In May, President Xi Jinping called for the public's feedback on the nation's 2026-30 national economic development plan, with an emphasis on science and modernisation.
In the past few months, Xi and other top Chinese leaders have been travelling around the country to lay the groundwork for the new blueprint and a coming party plenum. A comprehensive catalogue of quantifiable socio-economic goals will be made public in March.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

GSK signs US$12.5 billion licence deal with Hengrui as China rises in global pharmaceuticals
GSK signs US$12.5 billion licence deal with Hengrui as China rises in global pharmaceuticals

South China Morning Post

time4 minutes ago

  • South China Morning Post

GSK signs US$12.5 billion licence deal with Hengrui as China rises in global pharmaceuticals

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) will pay a Chinese company US$12.5 billion for exclusive global rights to develop a dozen drugs, in a landmark deal that underscores how China's research labs are snapping up market share in the global pharmaceutical and biomedical industries. Advertisement The deal would give GSK the rights to develop a drug for treating chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) called HRD-9821, as well as 11 of the preclinical programmes owned by Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals. The global rights exclude mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau, according to a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange on Monday. The deal is the latest in a string of transactions between multinational firms and Chinese drug developers, which have bolstered China's share of global licensing deal value to 28 per cent in 2024 from 1 per cent in 2019. Pfizer agreed in May to pay US$1.25 billion to Shenyang-based 3SBio for the exclusive right to develop the Chinese company's drug for treating solid tumours. China's pharmaceutical out-licensing value soared to almost US$66 billion in the first six months of 2025, more than the whole of last year, according to a July 14 report from China Post Securities. For multinational companies, the deals gave them exclusive products to expand their product portfolio and pipelines, while the Chinese developers saw them as opportunities to cash in on prior work and fund new projects. The corporate flag of GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) next to a Chinese national flag outside a GlaxoSmithKline office building in Shanghai on July 12, 2013. Photo: Reuters Hengrui, established in the Jiangsu provincial city of Lianyungang in 1997, would receive a US$500 million upfront payment and charge US$12 billion to GSK upon the achievement of development, regulatory approval and sales milestones. Advertisement 'The signing of the agreement will help expand the international market for HRS-9821 and multiple innovative medicines in various therapeutic areas, including oncology, respiratory, immunology and inflammation, providing high-quality treatment options for patients worldwide,' Hengrui said in a statement.

Japan pitches Tokyo as new UN hub while US steps back from world stage
Japan pitches Tokyo as new UN hub while US steps back from world stage

South China Morning Post

time15 minutes ago

  • South China Morning Post

Japan pitches Tokyo as new UN hub while US steps back from world stage

As the United States increasingly retreats from global leadership, Japan is positioning itself to fill the void with Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike's proposal that the United Nations shift some of its operations to the Japanese capital. Advertisement Koike returned to Japan on Sunday following an official visit to the US, where she addressed the Johns Hopkins School of International Studies in Washington and highlighted Tokyo's emergence as a major player on the world stage. During her visit, she also met with policy experts at the Hudson Institute think tank, where Tokyo's drive to become a sustainable metropolis was high on the agenda. On Thursday, Koike held a 15-minute meeting with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres at the organisation's headquarters in New York. There, she proposed that more of the UN's offices be relocated to cities elsewhere in the world, including Tokyo. 'Tokyo would like to provide various types of support [to the UN],' Koike told reporters after the meeting, highlighting the city's advantages over other locations, such as 'public safety, security and now, with the weak yen, there are other positive aspects to life'. Advertisement Guterres acknowledged that his office had 'received offers of cooperation from various countries and regions', but declined to elaborate on the Japanese proposal or whether it might be pursued further.

CK Hutchison eyes inviting Chinese ‘major strategic investor' to Panama ports deal
CK Hutchison eyes inviting Chinese ‘major strategic investor' to Panama ports deal

HKFP

time21 minutes ago

  • HKFP

CK Hutchison eyes inviting Chinese ‘major strategic investor' to Panama ports deal

Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison said Monday it was eyeing inviting a Chinese 'major strategic investor' to join a US-led consortium negotiating the sale of its global ports business outside China, including operations at the Panama Canal. The firm said in March it was offloading the firms — including operations in the vital Central American waterway — to a group led by asset manager BlackRock for US$19 billion in cash. The sale was seen as a political victory for US President Donald Trump, who had vowed to 'take back' the Panama Canal from alleged Chinese control, prompting Beijing's ire. China's market regulator said in March it was reviewing the deal. '(CK Hutchison) remains in discussions with members of the consortium with a view to inviting (a) major strategic investor from (China) to join as a significant member of the consortium,' the group said in a stock exchange filing. The firm added that changes to the consortium's membership and deal structure will be needed for the deal 'to be capable of being approved by all relevant authorities'. CK Hutchison announced in March it was offloading its global ports business outside China — including operations in the vital Central American waterway — to a group led by asset manager BlackRock for $19 billion in cash. The sale was seen as a political victory for US President Donald Trump, who had vowed to 'take back' the Panama Canal from alleged Chinese control, drawing Beijing's ire. China's market regulator said in March it was reviewing the deal. CK Hutchison said Monday that the 'period for exclusive negotiations' mentioned in the March announcement had expired, but that discussions will continue. It did not name the major Chinese investor. China's biggest shipping company Cosco was set to join the consortium and was requesting veto rights or equivalent powers, Bloomberg News reported. Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Denise Wong told the outlet that 'ongoing negotiations and the reported inclusion of Cosco Shipping in the consortium have likely eased concerns over Chinese regulatory hurdles, strengthening investor confidence in the deal's viability'. CK Hutchison said it 'intends to allow such time as is required for such discussions to achieve' a workable arrangement. It said it had stated on several occasions that it 'will not proceed with any transaction that does not have the approval of all relevant authorities'. Its Hong Kong-listed shares climbed nearly one percent Monday, while Cosco rose 0.5 percent. The consortium's original structure was designed to pass control of CK Hutchison's two Panama ports to BlackRock's Global Infrastructure Partners unit, while the remaining ports will go to Italian billionaire Gianluigi Aponte's Terminal Investment Limited. AFP has contacted Cosco for comment. The Panama Ports Company, a CK Hutchison subsidiary, has managed the port of Cristobal on the canal's Atlantic side and Balboa on the Pacific side since 1997, via a concession from the Panama government.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store