Sun Hung Kai chairman pins retail, hospitality recovery hopes on ‘normal flow of people’ between Hong Kong, mainland
- Developer’s underlying profit for year ended June 30 edges up 1.7 per cent
- SHKP’s Hong Kong hotels report operating losses; rental income from city also lower
“In the short term, cross-border travel restrictions will remain in effect and impact the operating environment. Nevertheless, the normal flow of people between Hong Kong and the mainland is expected to be restored earlier … given that both places have effectively controlled the pandemic,” he said. “This will be conducive to the overall economy in general, particularly the retail and hospitality industries.”
Kwok’s remarks came after Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor announced on Tuesday that two quarantine-free schemes will allow for visitors from both sides of the border. An official across the border said on Thursday that the status quo was unlikely to change before March.
The developer announced its final results for the year ended June 30, 2021 and its hotels portfolio was still making operating losses. It also recorded lower retail rental revenue during the year because of a lack of tourists, even though the company’s overall results edged up.
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Relaunch of quarantine-free ‘Return2HK’ scheme for Hongkongers arriving from mainland China, Macau
SHKP’s underlying profit, which excluded the effect of fair value change on investment properties, was HK$29.87 billion (US$3.8 billion) for the year, up 1.7 per cent compared with HK$29.37 billion for the previous year.
