PRESS DIGEST - Hong Kong - June 3
HONG KONG, June 3 (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 JOURNAL
-- Hong Kong property transactions jumped 50 percent year on year in May to a total of US$39.4 billion, the highest in 11 months. The number of transactions rose 42 percent on year to 11,788, the highest in 15 months, according to the Land Registry. -- Cathay Pacific (0293.HK) sees no improvements in its passenger traffic and cargo volume for May, part of the off-peak low season between May and June. A direct air link between Taiwan and China also hit the airline's traffic volume, despite signs of improvement in the economy, a company executive said.
APPLE DAILY
-- A student leader of the 1989 pro-democracy movement in China, Xiang Xiaoji, was refused entry to Hong Kong on Tuesday and was put on a flight back to New York early on Wednesday. Xiang planned to attend a series of June 4 memorial activities in the territory.
SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
-- Goldman Sachs upgraded the Hong Kong property sector to attractive from neutral due to an improving outlook for prices and stablisation of the commercial real estate market. Macquarie forecast housing prices to increase 15 to 20 percent in 2009 due to limited supply and strong demand, instead of a 15 percent decline.
-- Shimao Property (0813.HK) warned of a looming bubble as some development sites on the mainland were sold at very high prices, and fierce bidding among land-hungry developers would lift home prices to expensive levels, according to chairman Hui Wing-mau.
-- Three adjacent sites for residential and retail use in Shenzhen sold for 2.61 billion yuan ($382.3 million) on Tuesday, much higher than property agents' forecast of 2 billion yuan, and 45 percent above the opening bid in an auction. -- China port operator China Merchants Holdings (0144.HK) is keen to invest in Taiwan's biggest port in Kaohsiung, taking advantage of improved cross-strait relations, according to chairman Fu Yuning.
MING PAO
-- At least eight people died and more than 5,500 people were injured by dogs in a suspected outbreak of rabies in China's Shanxi province. Over 20,000 dogs have been caught and killed so far, according to a mainland media report.
WEN WEI PO
-- A decline in mainland container terminal throughput narrowed in May, and a rebound is likely in the second half, said China Mechants Chairman Fu Yuning.
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