IN BRIEF (Page 10)

HK economic growth

Hong Kong expects negative economic growth for the last quarter of 2008 and the first two quarters of 2009, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Chief Executive Donald Tsang said.

Tsang said whether there will be clear signs of recovery in the latter part of 2009 will depend on how the global economy responds to various stimulus packages and policies.

The top official of the HKSAR said the damages from the financial tsunami have been lesser than in the United States and Europe and that the fundamentals of the Asian economies and the key elements of Hong Kong's economic success remained sound.

Shanghai, Disney deal

The Shanghai municipal government and the Walt Disney Co have reached an agreement concerning the major issues of building the first Disneyland on the Chinese mainland, mayor Han Zheng said.

"The project should be approved by the State Council (China's Cabinet) before it is carried out," Han told a press conference held in Shanghai, without disclosing the "major issues" of the agreement. He said the government has been in talk with Disney for more than 10 years, and the two sides have kept smooth communication.

Reports said the park would be built in the southeast suburb of Shanghai's Pudong area, which is 20 minutes' drive from the Pudong International Airport. The area of the new park was expected to be the largest among all Disney theme parks.

Macao casinos up

Casino revenues in Macao for the whole of 2008 rose by 31 percent year-on-year to a record high of 108.7 billion patacas ($13.7 billion), according to the figures released by the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ) of the Special Administrative Region (SAR).

The DICJ figures showed that the SAR, the only place in China where gaming is legal, registered casino revenues of 24.7 billion patacas ($3.12 billion) in the fourth quarter last year, dropping by 7 percent compared with the previous quarter, and decreasing by 0.25 percent year-on-year.

Gaming revenues of the SAR stood at 83.8 billion patacas ($10.6 billion) in 2007, growing by 45.7 percent over the previous year.

Tibet figures up

The government of Tibet autonomous region reported a more-than-10-percent economic growth this year, according to Qiangba Puncog, chairman of the regional government.

The Tibetan official also set forth other double-digit growth targets for 2009, including: per capita net income for farmers and herders; budget revenue for local finance; investment in fixed assets; and retail sales of consumer commodities.

Sichuan GDP to grow

Sichuan province, which was hit by a 7.8-magnitude earthquake on May 12, expects to see its GDP grow by 9 percent this year, said Governor Jiang Jufeng in his work report to the provincial people's congress in Chengdu.

The province plans to complete 72 percent of the reconstruction work this year despite the negative impact of the global economic slowdown.

The provincial government also hopes to create 620,000 new jobs for the local residents and expects a 10 percent growth in the disposable income of urban residents.

(China Daily 02/09/2009 page10)