By Michelle Toh and Wayne Chang
China will fully reopen borders with its special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macao next week, in what is expected to be a major boost for the economies of the two cities.
From Monday, travelers entering mainland China from Hong Kong or Macao will no longer need to provide proof of negative Covid tests, as long as they have not traveled abroad in the previous week, the State Council’s Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office said in a Friday statement. Daily quotas on the number of travelers will also be scrapped.
The resumption of normal travel is expected
to provide much support to the battered economies of the two cities. Hong Kong is a major international financial center, and, before the pandemic, Macao was the world’s casino capital.
Hong Kong’s economy contracted last year, according to preliminary government data, shrinking by 3.5% compared to 2021. The city’s GDP fell 4.2% in the fourth quarter, significantly more than economists’ forecasts.
Over the past three years, limited cross-border travel to mainland China has been listed as the top concern for businesses across the city, according to industry groups.
ourtesy: CNN
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Courtesy: CNN