Hong Kong’s leader John Lee Ka-chiu has rolled out a raft of “reforms” in his midterm policy blueprint at a time when the city is facing economic headwinds and uncertainties arising from continuing geopolitical tensions.
Over 2½ hours, Lee relaxed mortgage lending restrictions and introduced new rules to eradicate substandard subdivided flats and liquor tax cuts.
Here are the 14 key policies you need to know from Lee’s third policy address delivered at the Legislative Council on Wednesday.
1. Eased mortgage limits
To inject life into the high-end property market, the ratio of mortgages for all residential properties will be eased to 70 per cent of their value, compared with the previous rule of 50 or 60 per cent.
This removes the previous cap of 60 per cent maximum loans for properties of HK$35 million and higher.
The maximum debt servicing ratio will also be adjusted to 50 per cent from 40 per cent for both residential and non-residential properties.
2. Attract more IPOs
The government will implement new measures to enhance market efficiency and reduce transaction costs to reverse the slowdown in Hong Kong’s initial public offering (IPO) proceeds. The Securities and Futures Commission and the Hong Kong stock exchange will also streamline vetting processes – meaning the processes could take a shorter time – to encourage more listings.
