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Housing Authority Chairman Re-appointed 2.
Construction Output for the Second Quarter of 2002 3.
Housing Society may quit two projects with private
partners 4.
SHKP warmed by housing policy
1. Housing Authority Chairman Re-appointed
Hong
Kong Government, 26 September 2002 The
Chief Executive, Mr Tung Chee Hwa, has re-appointed Dr Cheng Hon-kwan as the Chairman
of the Housing Authority (HA) with effect from October 1, a spokesman for the
Government announced today (September 26). Following
the recommendation in the Report of the Review of the Institutional Framework
for Public Housing (RIFPH), Government departments concerned are now considering
the details of the necessary legislative amendments for the appointment of the
Secretary for Housing, Planning and Lands (SHPL) as the Chairman of the Housing
Authority, the spokesman said. "In
the interim, we are pleased to note Dr Cheng's agreement to serve the community
by staying on as the Chairman of the HA," the spokesman remarked. The
RIFPH Report suggests that SHPL should take over the chairmanship of the HA and
take full responsibility for all aspects of the formulation and implementation
of housing policy, a move that requires amendments to the Housing Ordinance. Dr
Cheng was first appointed as the Chairman of the HA in October 2000, bringing
with him his long experience of public service and professional expertise in the
construction industry. "The
Chief Executive thanked Dr Cheng for his invaluable contribution during the past
two years and looked forward to his able leadership in meeting challenges ahead,"
the spokesman added.
2. Construction Output for the Second Quarter of 2002
Hong
Kong Government, 26 September 2002 1.
The total gross value of construction work performed by main contractors decreased
by 0.8% in nominal terms compared with a year earlier to $27.5 billion in the
second quarter of 2002, according to the preliminary results of the Quarterly
Survey of Construction Output released today (September 26) by the Census and
Statistics Department. 2.
Yet after discounting price changes, the total gross value of construction work
performed by main contractors increased by 3.5% in real terms over the same period.
3. Gross value
of construction work in real terms is derived by deflating the corresponding nominal
value with an appropriate price index to the 2000 price level. 4.
Analysed by type of construction work, the gross value of construction work performed
at private sector sites totalled $11.1 billion in nominal terms in the second
quarter of 2002, representing an increase of 16.4% over a year earlier. In real
terms, it rose by 21.8%. The increase was mainly contributable to intensification
of work at some residential and commercial building sites. 5.
On the other hand, the gross value of construction work performed at public sector
sites decreased by 18.0% in nominal terms compared with a year earlier to $8.5
billion in the second quarter of 2002. In real terms, it fell by 12.5%. Decreases
in output occurred at both building sites and civil engineering sites, upon the
continued scale-back in the Public Housing Programme and tapering off of work
on some public infrastructure projects. 6.
The gross value of construction work performed by contractors at locations other
than construction sites amounted to $7.9 billion in nominal terms in the second
quarter of 2002, representing an increase of 1.1% over a year earlier. In real
terms, it increased by 2.6%. Works at locations other than construction sites
included minor new construction activities and renovation work at erected buildings
and structures; and electrical and mechanical fitting work. 7.
Analysed by end-use category, residential building projects accounted for the
largest share in the gross value of construction work performed at construction
sites in the second quarter of 2002. The gross value of construction work performed
for these projects amounted to $10.0 billion in nominal terms, which was 5.6%
lower than a year earlier. 8.
Transport projects constituted the second largest category of construction site
work. The gross value of construction work performed for these projects totalled
$3.4 billion in nominal terms, representing a decrease of 9.2% compared with a
year earlier. 9.
Commercial building projects represented the third largest category of construction
site work. The gross value of construction work performed for these projects was
$2.2 billion in nominal terms, representing an increase of 34.9% over a year earlier.
10. On a seasonally
adjusted basis, the gross value of construction work performed by main contractors
increased by 5.2% in nominal terms in the second quarter of 2002 compared with
the first quarter of 2002. In real terms, the increase was 5.7%. 11.
Owing to the widespread sub-contracting practices in the construction industry,
a construction establishment can be a main contractor for one contract and a sub-contractor
for another contract at the same time. The gross value of construction work performed
by main contractors covers only those projects in which the construction establishment
takes the role of a main contractor, but not projects in which it takes only the
role of a sub-contractor. However, sub-contractors' contribution to projects should
have been included in the gross value of construction work performed by main contractors
for whom they worked. 12.
More detailed statistics are given in the "Report on the Quarterly Survey
of Construction Output, 2nd Quarter 2002". The report is now on sale at $11
per copy. It can be purchased in person from : (i)
Government Publications Centre, Ground Floor, Low Block, Queensway Government
Offices, 66 Queensway, Hong Kong (Tel.: 2537 1910); or (ii)
Publications Unit of the Census and Statistics Department, 19th Floor, Wanchai
Tower, 12 Harbour Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong (Tel.: 2582 3025). 13.
Internet users may purchase publications online at the "Statistical Bookstore,
Hong Kong" (Address: http://www.statisticalbookstore.gov.hk)
with payment made instantly. Softcopies of the publications purchased are available
for immediate downloading while hardcopies purchased will be delivered by mail.
Subscription to regular publications and advance ordering of up coming releases
are also available. The Statistical Bookstore is hosted on the ESD portal
(Address: http://www.esd.gov.hk) together
with other public services. 14.
A mail order form for ordering or arranging subscription to hardcopies of publications
is available in most publications of the Census and Statistics Department. It
may be completed and sent back together with a cheque or bank draft covering all
necessary cost and postage. The order form is also available for downloading from
the website of the Department
(Address: http://www.info.gov.hk/censtatd/eng/service_desk/
forms_index.html). 15.
For enquiries about the survey results, please contact the Building, Construction
and Real Estate Statistics Section of the Census and Statistics Department at
telephone no. 2805 6426 or email building@censtatd.gov.hk.
16. Table
1 (text
version of Table 1) shows the gross value of construction work performed by
main contractors in the second quarter of 2002. Table
2 (text
version of Table 2) shows the revised figures for the first quarter of 2002.
3. Housing Society may quit two projects with private partners
ANTOINE
SO, SCMP 27 September 2002 Two
joint developments between the Housing Society and private developers look set
to be transformed into fully private developments because of the government's
plans to try to boost the property market. Society
chairman Chung Shui-ming confirmed yesterday that the so-called mixed developments
were being discussed by the society and government housing officials. The society
becamethe first public housing body to partner the private sector in mixed developments
in 2000. It is involved in projects in West Kowloon and Ap Lei Chau with Hang
Lung Development and Sun Hung Kai Properties respectively. The
idea was to split the developments into 70 per cent private units and 30 per cent
public units. A discounted land premium was offered to lure developers to join
in. "We
are in negotiation with the government about a possible change of the plan,"
Mr Chung said. When asked whether such a change would see different ratios between
public and private units, Mr Chung said "it's not a matter about the share
of private and public units", adding the final outcome depended largely on
government revision of the subsidied flats policy. Developers
have previously urged that mixed development projects should be changed to fully
private developments. While
declining to comment on senior officials' recent push to restore property prices,
Mr Chung said he believed the long-term goal to cap Home Ownership Scheme flats
at about 2,000 a year "is not too many". He
said the society's surplus had fallen from $1.249 billion in 2000/2001 to $486.5
million last financial year, due to the government's scaling back of subsidised
flat sales. He
warned the surplus would be further eroded in the coming year. The
society held about 4,000 vacant flats, Mr Chung said.
4. SHKP warmed by housing policy
SOPHIA
WONG, REUTERS and AFX-ASIA, SCMP 27 September 2002 The
government's stance on housing policy is encouraging and clear, according to Sun
Hung Kai Properties (SHKP) chairman Walter Kwok Ping-sheung. Announcing
the company's annual results yesterday, Mr Kwok said: "The government has
made a concrete statement. I believe the government's stance over the issue will
help stabilise property prices." The
government has indicated it plans to intervene in the property market to try to
push up prices in a bid to pull Hong Kong out of its economic slump. On
Wednesday, Financial Secretary Antony Leung Kam-chung told a conference it was
the government's policy to stabilise the property market. He said Chief Executive
Tung Chee-hwa was studying ways to boost prices. A
substantial cut in financial costs helped SHKP return a slightly better net profit
than last year and enabled it to pay a higher than expected special dividend.
SHKP said net
profit for the year to June 30 had edged up 2.26 per cent to HK$8.51 billion,
compared with HK$8.33 billion last year. Earnings per share increased 2.3 per
cent to HK$3.55, against HK$3.47 a year ago. Vice-chairman
and managing director Thomas Kwok Ping-kwong said the company was confident about
the property market. "Prices
are now back to their levels in the early 1990s, interest rates are very low and
affordability is high. There's little room for further downside," he said.
Thomas Kwok said
the company's pricing strategy would not be affected by the government's statement
and would still be market-driven. Meanwhile,
Walter Kwok said housing supply was high this year as more than 33,000 units would
be completed, but next year's figure would decrease substantially to 23,000 units.
He said demand
was improving significantly as average monthly primary sales this year had climbed
to 2,100 units against 1,600 last year. During
the past year, SHKP sold and pre-sold attributable properties amounting to HK$15.15
billion, 22.86 per cent less than the HK$19.64 billion in the previous year which
included proceeds from luxury residential development The Leighton Hill in Happy
Valley. Property
sales since July had passed HK$6.3 billion, with the majority contributed from
Park Island in Ma Wan. Walter
Kwok said 92 per cent of the completed 4.6 million square foot attributable gross
floor area from 11 projects had been sold during the past year and he estimated
3.2 million sq ft would be released for sale next year. Major
residential projects to be launched include a mass development in Yuen Long town
and a housing development in Ap Lei Chau. | 
