PRESS DIGEST - Hong Kong - July 23

HONG KONG, July 23 (Reuters) - These are some of the leading stories in Hong Kong newspapers on Wednesday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

HONG KONG ECONOMIC TIMES

-- Merrill Lynch rated HSBC Holdings (0005.HK) at underperform as it is doubtful the pre-exposed intention by China Investment Corp to invest in the banking giant will materialise.

APPLE DAILY

-- Major real estate agency Centaline is expected to sack more than 100 agents amid the property market downturn and a further 600 may face the same fate in the current market condition.

MING PAO DAILY NEWS

-- Asian Development Bank has revised up Hong Kong's GDP growth prediction this year from 4.5 percent to 4.9 percent in its latest forecast.

SING TAO DAILY

-- Property developer Sun Hung Kai Properties (0016.HK) says the group may slow the pace of its mainland investment a little due to tightening market controls. Its target to have 30 percent of assets in the mainland remains unchanged.

SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST

-- As much as 40 billion yuan has been earmarked to help Hong Kong enterprises move their operations to the remote parts of Guangdong in a package to help the industrial transformation for these companies, the provincial authorities told a visiting Hong Kong delegation, led by Chief Executive Donald Tsang.

-- The privacy commissioner has laid down 37 recommendations after an unprecedented inspection of the Hospital Authority's personal data system, prompted by a series of data leaks exposed since April with hundreds of patients' information lost.

THE STANDARD

-- Shun Tak Holdings (0242.HK), the major ferry service between China's Special Administrative Regions Hong Kong and Macau, plans to increase its ferry routes to combat a rival service and the impact on demand of the planned Macau-Hong Kong-Zhuhai bridge.

-- Chief Executive Donald Tsang's popularity has fallen to its lowest level since he took office three years ago, although his inflation-busting HK$11 billion package kept him above the all-time low reached a day before he made his announcement.

SING PAO

-- The seven-day Hong Kong Books Fair begins today with 483 exhibitors participating. Publishers have fewer financial books for sale as the stock market has declined.

WEN WEI PO

-- The number of retail investors in Hong Kong has passed the two million mark for the first time in a HKEx survey. The number translates to 36 percent of the adult population in the territory. The median value of their holdings is HK$100,000.

-- Experts fear China's total export growth will not reach 10 percent for the second half of the year.

TA KUNG PAO

-- Citi said funds were flowing out of the Asian market unit trusts and the amount reached US$800 million in the week to 16 July. Outflows from Hong Kong were US$13.8 million.

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