HK-London joint effort needed to curb crisis

Chief Executive Donald Tsang and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown agreed that Hong Kong and the UK must both play a major role in addressing the current economic situation, when they met Tuesday afternoon London time after Tsang's arrival there for a three-day visit.

They also said that authorities and regulators in both financial centers should step up contact and cooperation toward long-term agreements on international financial architecture and regulation.

Pirated HK ship released, but another is taken

A Hong Kong-registered cargo ship was released yesterday morning from a port in Somalia, two months after it was hijacked by Somali pirates off the Horn of Africa nation, the Chinese embassy in Kenya confirmed yesterday.

All 25 members of the ship's crew - 24 Chinese and one Sri Lankan - are safe. Meanwhile, the Marine Department confirmed yesterday another Hong Kong-registered freighter was hijacked in the Gulf of Aden off Yemen Tuesday. There are no Hongkongers or mainlanders among the crew.

E-transmission of vehicle insurance info to be tested

The Transport Department will launch a six-month pilot plan tomorrow to test the feasibility and effectiveness of electronic transmission of vehicle insurance data.

The plan applies to only the backend process in relation to the renewal of vehicle licenses. Six participating insurance companies will send vehicle insurance data to the Vehicles & Drivers Licensing Integrated Data System through a special portal to ensure it is encrypted with senders' identity authenticated for transmission.

Millions flowing from insolvency fund surplus

The accumulated surplus of the Protection of Wages on Insolvency Fund amounted to about HK$1.44 billion at the end of October, Secretary for Labour & Welfare Matthew Cheung said yesterday.

Cheung told lawmakers: "How much longer the accumulated surplus of the fund can cope with the disbursement of ex gratia payments ... will depend on the state of Hong Kong's economy, as well as the number of major insolvency cases in the years to come".

China Daily

(HK Edition 11/20/2008 page1)