Me with Jivamukti yoga teachers Nora from Pure Yoga Taipei and Lynn from Space Yoga Taipei
Me with Sandhi Ferreira, Jivamukti Teacher from NYC
Me with yoga partner Sharon and Ganesh Mohan
Ganesh Mohan speaking to a Pure Yoga instructor
Ganesh Mohan explaining why one should not breathe through the mouth during yoga
Ganesh Mohan
Ganesh Mohan’s lecture about the Back
All conference pass
Will definitely be back in 2011.
Planet Yoga second such company to fold in two months
Tanna Chong and Amy Nip
SCMP May 15, 2010
A yoga chain with three outlets and 13,000 members closed suddenly yesterday – the second such closure in two months – owing customers tens of thousands of dollars in prepaid fees.
For many customers, Planet Yoga’s closure was a double blow after they had joined it at a discounted rate following the closure of Yoga Yoga International in March.
Notices posted outside seven-year-old Planet Yoga’s branch in Central yesterday said it had folded because it was short of cash.
It said banks had withheld revenue of more than HK$5 million since September last year, and there was no timetable for the release of the cash, so it had gone into liquidation.
An industry leader predicted that at least two other yoga chains, of about eight remaining, would close this year because of stagnant demand and fierce price competition.
Yim Yuk-yip, who said she lost more than HK$10,000 when Yoga Yoga closed and more with the latest closure, said she wouldn’t join another yoga school. “If you suffered a loss twice, would you want it a third time?” she said. Another woman, who said she had been a member of Yoga Yoga and Planet Yoga, lost HK$10,000 and HK$12,000 respectively in the two closures.
Other customers complained that they had been lured into renewing contracts before they were due through what they said were unscrupulous sales methods.
One said she was asked to sign a second contract five months after the first. “The staff withheld my membership card after I attended a class,” she said. “Then they pestered me from 7pm to almost midnight, until I paid for the second contract.”
But when she looked into the contract details she found it included an extra pre-payment which staff had not mentioned.
“I went to the centre the next day and asked to cancel my purchase but they refused,” she said. She paid more than HK$30,000.
Another woman who said she had signed a two-year contract two months ago, said there had been no warning of the closure.
“I said [to a consultant] that I was worried about sudden closure of the school. But he assured me that the centre had just renewed its tenancy,” she said. She had paid HK$60,000 but had attended only three classes.
Democrat lawmaker Lee Wing-tat said he had been approached by 60 members for assistance and had laid fraud complaints with police for a further seven.
A spokeswoman for the provisional liquidator said refund terms would not be available until the first creditor meeting on May 31. Asked if every member would get back their deposits, she said: “The situation is special and it depends on different cases.”
The Consumer Council received more than 100 inquiries about Planet Yoga yesterday, council chief executive Connie Lau Yin-hing said.
The number of complaints about yoga centres had increased from 188 in 2009 to 199 in the first five months this year, including 12 about Planet Yoga, she said. “When the company closes down, the chance for a student to get a refund is very slim or none at all,” she said. Nevertheless, members could try contacting the liquidator.
Those who had prepaid using credit cards should file a written request to card companies to stop the transactions. Copies of credit card bills and contracts should be included for reference. Consumers should avoid prepayments and opt for companies which offered monthly payments, she said.
Fong Fai, president of the Yoga Association of Hong Kong, said the market had been difficult for two years and predicted two more centres would close this year.
“There was a growing demand after Sars but it has decreased since late 2007. The number of service providers kept going up so malicious price competition emerged,” he said.
Yoga schools relied on one-off payments of new members but new recruitment at some centres had been halved, he said.
The Trade Description Ordinance, which regulates the sale of products, does not cover services.
An evaluation of consumer protection laws was near completion, a Commerce and Economic Development Bureau spokeswoman said. The department was addressing the issue of unscrupulous sales practices, including companies which accept prepayment with no ability or intention of offering services.
Thirty-three Planet Yoga employees sought help from the Labour Department yesterday.
综合排名 城市名 乐居综合指数 乐房指数 乐业指数 乐学指数 乐商指数 乐游指数
1 北京 25.923 -0.800 3.500 7.914 7.341 2.128
Beijing
2 上海 24.195 -1.901 3.216 8.162 8.768 0.482
Shanghai
3 深圳 21.582 6.060 3.030 3.780 3.541 0.272
Shenzhen
4 广州 14.952 1.052 2.889 2.875 4.453 0.396
Guangzhou
5 南京 14.921 0.705 2.116 5.333 3.130 0.391
Nanjing
6 杭州 10.122 -0.790 1.681 3.271 3.300 0.599
Hangzhou
7 青岛 8.607 0.534 0.534 2.079 3.246 0.504
Qingdao
8 成都 7.950 -0.553 0.897 1.829 2.920 1.321
Chengdu
9 宁波 7.819 0.266 1.581 1.085 2.998 0.372
Ningbo
10 沈阳 7.213 -1.602 0.333 3.869 2.814 0.342
Shenyang
11 长沙 6.975 -0.552 1.210 2.706 1.844 0.412
Changsha
12 哈尔滨 6.675 -0.226 0.747 3.257 1.175 0.403
Harbin
13 无锡 6.613 0.447 1.297 1.062 3.266 0.512
Wuchang
14 长春 6.571 0.202 1.124 2.444 1.220 0.588
Changchun
15 天津 6.523 -0.596 1.270 1.916 2.087 0.367
Tianjin
16 苏州 6.440 -1.078 0.883 1.025 3.854 0.269
Suzhou
17 大连 6.355 -0.373 1.145 1.713 2.177 0.227
Dalian
18 济南 6.283 0.298 0.776 1.861 1.791 0.186
Jinan
19 南昌 6.269 -0.257 0.966 3.382 0.718 0.070
Nanchang
20 武汉 5.797 -1.783 1.767 2.114 2.273 0.211
Wuhan
We have a 50SMA / 100SMA crossover. i.e. blue line has crossed below purple line.
View from current home.
Thursday
Inspect property – done
Friday
Collect keys- done
Visit new home to tailor furniture location – decide which furniture to stay in old home- done
Clean new home and remove debris- done
Do laundry- done
Saturday
Change Locks- done
Visit and clean new home, register Octopuses – done
Locate handover manuals and documents
Decide what to hand carry and pack into rimowa
Decide what clothes and items to give to charity
Pack Home – Kitchen, Bookshelves, Tea, Records and CDs, Clothes, Toilets
Indicate what items are fragile, and label each box as to where it should be placed in the new house
Dismantle TV and Hifi and Computer
Dismantle Fish Tank
Sunday
Make a final inspection of the house checking for any left items
Move in the morning
Set up Fish Tank
Set up Computer
Set up TV and Hifi
Set up boxes
Hang clothes in wardrobes
Visit drycleaners
Enjoy
The Tibetan scholar also known as Lama Jigmed Tenzin Wangpo says his parents’ tough love has allowed him to help others
Yvonne Lai
Jan 10, 2010
OUTSOURCED PLAYTIME
When I was born [in a Tibetan refugee camp in Nepal], my parents and relatives wanted to give me a spiritual education. From [when I was] three or four years old, I trained in ritual chanting and reading scriptures. I remember watching my friends from the window playing soccer and having fun, thinking they were really lucky. My parents did give me time to play [but only after] I had finished reciting. I didn’t have regular toys like cars and [action figures] but ritual objects like bells and prayer wheels. While I was reading, I used to go to the toilet 10 times – just to make time feel shorter. That was my colourful childhood.
Looking back, I feel my parents gave me tough love but for good reason. They [gave] me an opportunity to learn that the other kids’ parents did not know how to provide. Today, I am able to help those kids who were playing when I was reading – I can help their kids go to school. I [have been] able to sponsor over 300 children to go to high school and college. I think all my hard work paid off and they played on my behalf.
THE PATH TO INDIA … AND BEYOND
When I was about 15 years old, my grandparents – who were well-known elders in the refugee camp [in which] I grew up – said, `Any girl in the camp, you just point and we will ask their parents; they will be happy to marry her to you.’ That was the turning point. I could have chosen to be married with children at 15 years old but I decided not to follow that route. I asked for more time to study. I could have been anything that I chose to be. I wanted to go to a Tibetan Buddhist univer-sity in Varanasi, India, to study the philosophy of Buddhism.
I was there for seven years. Some study even longer. But [I got] the seven-year itch: I had to run away. I [went to] study with even more profound masters in Nepal. A centre in America sent me invitations twice to [teach]. I accepted and went to America in 1988. I like [Americans'] open-mindedness; my personality probably matches theirs a little. I stayed for more than 20 years, and still go back for two to three months every year.
FOR BETTER OR FOR BEST A year before I met my wife [Tibetan Tenzin Choeden, in New York], I was telling my students: `I’m never going to marry. I don’t think marriage is necessary, blah blah blah.’
The first time [we] ‘met’, it was on the phone. We decided to date face-to-face. There was this instinctive feeling that I must be ready to marry. [It made me] try to court her in a respectful way, to make her my wife.
I seek the spiritual value to live my life better. When I sought to marry, it must have also been me seeking to live my life better by marrying that person, right? [Marriage] is a spiritual journey in every way. It’s not that we have perfected our ability; every moment is teaching us, giving us the opportunity to live life in a meaningful, happy, sensible way. [The couple now have three children.]
UNIVERSAL SUFFERING [One] cannot avoid suffering. So, if you see someone next to you suffering, why not give him a big hug and ponder with him, ‘What is the cost? Is it inevitable for us to experience it? Do you get sad about it or can you look at it differently and see it as food for your growth?’ This helps them realise the nature of suffering.
EVERY BREATH YOU TAKE
We believe that everyone possesses the Buddhist nature, this wish-fulfilling quality, but most of the time we stray from it. We are lost until we realise that this breath is more precious than anything else. The point is not so much about what external things are doing to you – but to see how you are bombarded with all these thoughts [and] learn ways to handle them. I recommend everybody find at least five minutes each day – by oneself, not with music, video games, SMS or phone, not worrying about the future or what you did – [in which to] remain silent and be with yourself.
SPONTANEOUS INSTRUCTION It’s not easy to be a friend of humanity. That’s why we have to give people the chance to come to spiritual centres and meditation places to learn – not only for one or two days, but every day. That is the purpose of the Wencheng Gongzhu International Foundation, and I consider Hong Kong the headquarters. Hong Kong is truly a place where east meets west. It’s easy for me to travel to Nepal, India, Shanghai, Beijing. I love Hong Kong. I wouldn’t change anything.
I think spirituality is true politics. You can galvanise people’s way of thinking and change suffering to happiness; what better politics is there than that? When you don’t have a selfish agenda, you don’t feel you have to push too hard on anything. True compassion has no agenda – therefore it is skilful. Why identify yourself in such a way that you cannot bend and be flexible? There’s something wrong if you are not flexible – you are insecure.
In the live lecture setting [Rinpoche has spoken at Harvard and Yale universities] I never prepare anything. Many times, I don’t remember what topic I’m supposed to be speaking on and have to be reminded. But to me, this kind of lively, spontaneous way is true expression of freedom. Being in the moment allows you to introduce, explain and instruct. Life is not a rehearsal; if I’m preparing something then I’m rehearsing, that’s not life.
HK$567 billion floods into HK
Dennis Eng and Maria Chan
Nov 20, 2009
A total of HK$567.5 billion flowed into Hong Kong from October 1 last year to last Friday in what Hong Kong Monetary Authority chief executive Norman Chan Tak-lam described as an unprecedented situation.
The huge inflow, especially since the beginning of this year, targeted mainly stock and property investments, Chan said. A splurge on stocks has boosted the Hang Seng Index from a low of 11,345 in March to a close of 22,643 yesterday.
Property prices have also risen – about 30 per cent on average – this year, with prices for some luxury properties setting new records despite little evidence that Hong Kong has shrugged off its recessionary woes.
The surge in the stock market is most evident in the gains registered by the Exchange Fund, a reserve that backs the local currency. The fund reported a HK$96.9 billion gain in the first nine months of this year, more than offsetting the HK$75 billion fall last year. In the third quarter alone, the fund recorded a rise of HK$71.9 billion, with equity investment income accounting for 57.7 per cent of the total. The government pocketed HK$25.6 billion in investment gains for the first nine months.
Chan said the fund continued to perform well last month but declined to predict if the full-year figure would top HK$100 billion. The fund’s investment holdings mainly include stocks and bonds. Chan said he would consider further diversifying the fund’s investments, possibly including the mainland currency, to help stabilise the rate of return.
“There are still many uncertainties,” he said. Chan attributed the flood of liquidity to measures introduced to help prop up the ailing economy but warned of ballooning asset prices as a result.
“There are some potential risks, including inflation and an asset bubble,” Chan said.
“I am not worried about governments pulling out too soon, but rather that it will be too late.”
He said it was a matter of time before central banks around the world withdrew those measures. But maintaining the measures for too long risked more fund inflows, further inflating asset prices. Interest rates could also rise if the flood of funds left Hong Kong, posing dangers to economic growth and hurting homebuyers who were enjoying record-low borrowing costs.
The huge funds inflow has dragged down the three-month Hibor – the interest rate banks impose to lend funds to one another – to 0.12 per cent. Chan advised aspiring homebuyers to evaluate their ability to make mortgage repayments if the rate rose.
In an attempt to head off possible risks from an interest rate rise, the authority recently required banks to lend no more than 60 per cent of the value of properties selling for more than HK$20 million. But there were no plans to impose this requirement for mass-market housing, Chan said. Banks can usually lend up to 70 per cent of a property’s value.
The record-low borrowing costs and ample liquidity have seen funds flow from bank deposits to assets like stocks and properties in an attempt to generate higher returns.
Buoyed by the increased activity, the stock and property markets are expected to earn the government more in stamp duty than the HK$25 billion it estimated for this financial year.
KPMG tax partner Jennifer Wong How-yee said the government could reap an additional HK$11 billion in stamp duty paid on stock transactions and an extra HK$5 billion on duties for properties.
Revenue from the sale of land and the payment of land premiums by developers could also exceed expectations. Just HK$4.1 billion of the estimated HK$16.5 billion in land income has been realised, although this does not include HK$9.59 billion in land premium that Henderson Land and New World Development will add to public coffers for their Lok Wo Sha site in Wu Kai Sha.
Two sites in Tai Po will also be auctioned at the end of next month and are expected to fetch up to HK$12.4 billion.
But Agnes Chan Sui-kuen, a tax partner at accounting firm Ernst & Young, said the package of relief measures announced in May that cost the government HK$16.8 billion was expected to largely cancel out any extra revenue flowing in. The government estimated a deficit of HK$39.87 billion in its budget for 2009-10. In the six months to September 30, the administration reported a deficit of HK$64.78 billion.
The financial year runs from April 1 to March 31.
Economic data suggests the impact of the global financial meltdown on Hong Kong was not as severe as the Asian financial crisis more than a decade ago. At that time, the city’s gross domestic product shrank 8.9 per cent from the third quarter of 1997 to the end of 1998. Between the second quarter of last year and the first quarter of this year, GDP contracted 7.8 per cent.
Yvonne Tsui and Paggie Leung
Nov 17, 2009
“It takes me more courage to survive than to die,” Lok Wai-kin, a former firefighter who has been a tetraplegic since a road accident in 2004, said outside the Court of First Instance yesterday.
Lok made the painful summation of how difficult his life was after reaching an out-of-court settlement on a HK$42.56 million claim against the driver and the owner of the car that ran into his motorcycle on Route Twisk in February 2004, leaving him paralysed from the neck down.
Lok, now 34, sustained severe injuries that left him in a coma for two days from which he awoke to find he could only move his head and shrug his shoulders, with no control or feeling over any other part of his body.
After three years in hospital, Lok still requires 24-hour care and a home that can house his bulky wheelchair and a gurney upon which he lies to shower.
“I wanted a mercy killing,” said Lok outside court yesterday, recalling days spent lying in a hospital bed. “All I could do was stare at the ceiling. You better save your tears for when someone is there because otherwise they just hurt your eyes.”
When asked if he was married, he replied: “Almost.” He said he let his girlfriend, aged 25 at the time, go because he thought a life with him would be so unfair to her. He has since lost contact with her.
Lok also lost his job.
“I wanted to be a fireman so badly that I sat for the recruitment tests twice before I was enrolled,” he said.
But he said he had not given up on life. “I can no longer save people, but I can talk to people,” he said. “I tell people my story and show them how they should treasure their lives.
“I have to live and this requires more courage [than dying]. If I died, I would not have to face so many problems. [If] I can survive like this, those who are healthy and able should treasure their lives.”
Lok filed his claim for damages against driver Chow Shing-woon and car owner Chow Shing-kai in 2007. The two defendants were adjudged liable to pay damages on February 23, 2007.
An out-of-court settlement was reached on the amount of damages yesterday but it is to remain confidential. It is, however, believed to be one of the largest such settlements in Hong Kong’s legal history.
Lok’s barrister, Andrew S.Y. Li, yesterday asked Recorder Benjamin Yu SC to approve the settlement.
“For [Lok], it has been an arduous journey to get to this point,” Li said. “Although he realises that whatever compensation he may get, he will never get his previous life back, he wants society to know that if you drive carelessly or recklessly, like the defendant in this case, it may not affect your own life but you may wreck the life of another person.”
Chow Shing-woon had been convicted of careless driving and fined HK$1,200, the lawyer said in court.
Yu approved the settlement.
Insurance firms pay at least some damages in most such cases, lawyers said, and the driver might also be liable for compensation.
Under the Motor Vehicles Insurance (Third Party Risks) Ordinance, a driver must be insured for third-party death or injury. Third-party liability for such accidents in Hong Kong is capped at HK$100 million. In addition to compulsory coverage for third-party bodily injury and death, a portion of that sum may be applied to third-party property losses.
HK’s ‘Rumpole’ was tireless in the search for justice
Matthew Brooks
Updated on Nov 08, 2009
One of the enduring memories of former barrister and acting District Court judge, Albert Sanguinetti, who died on October 27 aged 86, is of him, fittingly, in court.
With his case not proceeding well, Sanguinetti disappeared under his table. The confused judge asked him what he was doing. “I am simply searching for justice my lord,” came the response. Above the general laughter, even the judge was seen to smile wryly at a lawyer well known for his wit and intellect.
On another occasion, a farmer he was representing whispered to Sanguinetti’s interpreter. The judge asked what was said. He replied that he could not repeat the private message. When the judge demanded he do so, Sanguinetti said: “My client asks why I am wearing a cauliflower on my head.”
Sanguinetti later said: “It made me realise how ridiculous it was to have wigs in court.”
Before arriving in Hong Kong in 1958, Sanguinetti spent two years in Kenya with Britain’s Colonial Legal Service. He was assistant attorney general of Gibraltar from 1952.
Arriving in Hong Kong aged 35, he soon became a magistrate.
His experiences here had a profound influence. He believed that the law had a responsibility to rehabilitate people, not condemn them. “I remember the venerable Hin Shing-lo, who for years sat in the Magistrates’ Court,” Sanguinetti recalled. “He was much respected and loved by the Chinese and others and was a merciful person indeed … invariably he gave the offender a chance.”
Sanguinetti came to believe that the harsher the punishment, the less chance it had of being either a deterrent, or useful for rehabilitation. His philosophy was a direct challenge to the prevailing colonial justice system, in which corporal punishment was common. He relentlessly pursued its abolition.
Last year he said: “I was absolutely stunned when I first came here in 1958. They were given … the cane, simply for begging. For being destitute – for not having parents to look after you. Can you believe that?”
A close associate was Elsie Tu (then Elsie Elliott), one of Hong Kong’s most influential social campaigners throughout the 1960s and ’70s. The matter of five HK cents brought them together. In 1965, the Star Ferry applied to raise its fare from 20 to 25 cents. Despite Tu collecting 20,000 signatures, the Transport Advisory Committee approved the price rise in March 1966.
The Kowloon riots began a month later. Tu was called to give information to a court of inquiry. She recalled: “Since the police were determined to attribute those causes to me, for having led an entirely disconnected earlier protest against the fare increase, I sensed from the outset that I would be transformed from witness into defendant.”
Sanguinetti agreed to represent Tu for just HK$1. As she predicted, the inquiry quickly turned into a de facto trial. Disgusted, his summing-up was one of the shortest in the history of Hong Kong jurisprudence. Placing a large Bible in front of him, he read: “Whoever finds this person guilty is passing judgment unto himself.”
The final judgment of the court was that Tu be sent, in the judge’s words, “before the court of public opinion for censure”.
A short time later, she was elected to the Urban Council with, as she recounted, “the highest number of votes on record”.
“For ever after, Albert would tease me that I still owed him his dollar. I will always be personally indebted to him for the role he played in representing me.”
Sanguinetti was one of the two founding members of the Hong Kong Section of the International Commission of Jurists, a NGO dedicated to law and human rights. He represented Amnesty International as an observer in South Korea and Vietnam.
“Unofficially, I was Amnesty’s man in Hong Kong,” he said.
He was awarded life membership of the Bar Association on its 50th anniversary in 1996. Ever the rebel, he twice declined the title of Queen’s Counsel, believing it superfluous given the imminent handover, which he supported, telling anyone who would listen: “The sooner the better.”
He never married, dedicating himself to the law. In doing so he reminded many of Rumpole of the Bailey, his arms swinging out of the sleeves of his tattered gown and his disintegrating wig slightly askew. His pipe and gold-rimmed monocle added to the effect. And like John Mortimer’s fictional character, Sanguinetti had an astute legal brain.
According to his friend Brian McElney, former president of the Law Society, work as a barrister brought out the best in him.
“Albert flourished greatly, building up one of the best practices in Hong Kong,” he said. “He was tenacious fighter and would do all in his power to fight for his client and ensure he had a fair trial. Albert was truly an expert on the law of evidence in criminal cases … Hong Kong’s real life `Rumpole’.”
A compassionate and generous man, the self-styled Robin Hood of Hong Kong lawyers charged the wealthy while taking on cases of the poor that no other lawyer wanted.
When Au Pui-kuen, a police detective, shot a youth dead for asking him to drive more carefully, Sanguinetti represented the poor youth’s family on a pro-bono basis.
He retired from the Bar in 1994.
Albert J.J. Sanguinetti’s ashes will be scattered across the waters of Hong Kong, according to his wishes.
He is survived by two sisters and numerous nieces and nephews.
SCMP Oct 23, 2009
The income gap between the rich and poor in Hong Kong is the widest among the world’s wealthiest economies, according to a UN report.
The report also shows that the richest 10 per cent in the city enjoy about a third of the total income, while the poorest 10 per cent share just 2 per cent.
The Human Development Report, released by the United Nations Development Programme on October 5, shows Hong Kong had a relatively high Gini index of 43.4 in 2007, the highest among “very high human development” economies.
Hong Kong is closely followed by Singapore, at 42.5, the US, at 40.8, and South Korea, at 39.2.
The Gini coefficient is a widely used indicator of income inequality. The lower the measurement, the more equal the wealth distribution. A measurement of zero would indicate absolute equality and 100 would mean absolute inequality.
An economy is classified as “very high human development” when people can expect to be better educated, live longer and earn more than their predecessors.
The mainland, which is grouped among economies of “medium human development”, has a Gini coefficient of 41.5, and India, in the same group, 36.8.
The Census and Statistics Department published a separate series of Gini coefficients two years ago, which showed an increase from 0.518 in 1996 to 0.525 in 2001 and a further increase to 0.533 in 2006. The department uses a scale of zero to one.
This local trend reflects an increasing household income disparity over the period. A Labour and Welfare Bureau spokeswoman said the disparity was a result of the transition of the city towards a knowledge-based economy.
“The increase in the demand for people with higher qualifications and professional, technical or management skills has helped widen the income of different types of employees,” she said.
Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen has said that only households earning less than what they would receive in welfare payments could be considered poor. This means a four-member household would have to earn less than HK$9,920 to qualify as “poor”.
Cuo Hong-si, who came to Hong Kong with four relatives from the mainland three years ago, feels his situation has deteriorated.
“I earned about HK$5,000 for my first job here and I am now earning HK$5,500,” he said. “But prices have increased much more.”
Cuo said he and his wife had to work long hours just to make ends meet. Although they had a combined income of about HK$11,000, he said they had no time or spare income for leisure.
Professor Wong Hung of Chinese University said income disparity had worsened since 1981.
“Poor people are not benefiting from the economic growth,” he said.
Wong cautioned that if inequality continued to grow, society would become unstable.
Ho Hei-wah, director of the Society for Community Organisation, said the UN report had demonstrated that the government’s policy of emphasising economic growth over supporting the poor was wrong.
Hong Kong Council of Social Services business director Chua Hoi-wai said the income gap was widening because the government’s economic policy was slanted towards certain businesses or industries.
Those without the skills for those activities could not benefit from the growth. The high cost of land was another factor, he said.
“As rental costs increase, companies have to squeeze staff costs to stay competitive,” Chua said. As a result, workers’ wages had stagnated and in some cases fallen, he said.
Hong Kong’s incredible shrinking flats revealed
Olga Wong and Joyce Ng
SCMP Sep 27, 2009
Buyers of flats in Hong Kong are getting less and less for their money as common areas included in the floor area quoted by developers eat into their living space.
Because of this practice – described by the head of a leading property agency as a “trick” to lower flats’ price per square foot – their actual size has shrunk by as much as 22 per cent since the 1980s. For example, a new flat listed as being 700 sq ft has only as much space as a 530 sq ft flat built in the 1980s.
In many cases buyers do not know what common areas they are paying for. While price lists and sales brochures list lift lobbies and clubhouses as examples of common areas, others are never disclosed. They include architectural features, planters, space for watchmen, rooftops, pathways to car parks and covered walkways, say architects and surveyors who have worked in the field for more than 20 years.
Some developers are even charging buyers for “green” features the government has exempted from a building’s gross floor area in an effort to make developments more environment-friendly.
The efficiency rate of new flats – gross floor area divided by internal floor area – is as low as 68 per cent.
Shih Wing-ching, chairman of property agency Centaline Holdings, described the practice as a developers’ trick to lower the apparent price of the flat.
“The larger the flat’s size, the lower the per-square-foot price,” he said.
Consumer Council chief executive Connie Lau Yin-hing said it was time to tell consumers exactly what they were buying.
“After all, buyers expect to pay only for what they can enjoy, and they need to pay for the maintenance of the common areas too,” Lau said.
The Sunday Morning Post commissioned a study of the efficiency rates of 23 housing estates built since 1980. The estates covered were built by several big developers, and include the city’s 10 biggest residential developments.
Data collected from developers, banks and the Rating and Valuation Department show the efficiency rates of estates built in the 1980s – including Taikoo Shing in Eastern district, and Whampoa Garden and Telford Garden in Kowloon – are as high as 90 per cent, meaning a flat’s internal floor area is 90 per cent of its gross floor area. (Gross floor area – a flat’s interior plus an apportioned share of common areas – is crucial because developers and buyers alike base their calculation of a flat’s price per square foot on it.)
The efficiency rate began to drop in the 1990s, when it fell to around 80 per cent, and the trend has continued. Flats built in the past 10 years are only 70 to 75 per cent efficient. The rate is even lower on some of the newest estates. At Victoria Towers in Tsim Sha Tsui, developed by Cheung Kong (Holdings), the rate is as low as 68 per cent; at Island Resort in Chai Wan, developed by Sino Land, it is as low as 69 per cent.
Using the latest definition for saleable area endorsed by the government, the efficiency rates of estates sold this year are just above 70 per cent.
It ranges from 71 per cent to 73 per cent for the flats of Silver Lake at Wu Kai Sha, in the northeastern New Territories; at Le Prestige in Lohas Park, part of the new town of Tseung Kwan O, the rate is 75 per cent. If balconies and utility platforms are taken out of the calculations, the efficiency rates at these estates are between 68 per cent and 72 per cent.
While the government has endorsed guidelines issued by the Real Estate Developers Association concerning the definition of a home’s saleable area, no attempt has been made to standardise the meaning of gross floor area.
The government and the association admit there is no standardised definition of gross floor area, meaning developers are free to include whatever they want in a building’s common area. Although developers are now required to inform buyers about the amount of common area included in a flat’s gross floor area, they are not required to provide an exhaustive list of the common area’s constituent parts.
Common areas account for as much as 22 per cent of gross floor area in newly completed estates, our research shows.
“Having controlled the saleable area, it’s time for the next step,” said Raymond Chan Yuk-ming, chairman of the public and social affairs committee of the Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors.
He proposes limiting the types of common area that can be included.
“It would be more reasonable if owners were asked to pay for facilities that they really appreciate and enjoy,” he said.
Louis Loong Hon-biu, secretary general of the developers association, said common facilities add value to estates and therefore to flats.
Shih, of Centaline, said the government should set a definition of gross floor area.
Developer Swire Properties said it would welcome a standardised definition of gross floor area since it would enhance transparency and consistency.
A spokeswoman for Cheung Kong (Holdings) said the company followed association guidelines.
Despite the controversy, owners who buy flats “off plan” – meaning before they are built – and only find out later how small they are seldom complain.
Sai Kung district councillor Chan Kai-wai said he had received complaints about flats sold in Tseung Kwan O, but the buyers refused to talk to the media.
“Who would undermine the resale value of their own property,” he asked.
Yvonne Liu
SCMP Sep 15, 2009
A one-bedroom flat in a luxury development in Tsim Sha Tsui has fetched a whopping HK$30,025 per sq ft, setting a record in Hong Kong.
A Hong Kong businessman who owns a trading firm has paid HK$24.5 million for an 816 sq ft flat on the 56th floor of The Masterpiece for his own use, according to Centaline Property Agency, which concluded the deal. The price is a record for a one-bedroom flat.
The useable area of the apartment is just 590 sq ft, similar to flats in mass residential projects.
Thomas Chan, Centaline sales director, said the buyer was willing to pay the high price because the flat offered views of Victoria Harbour and was centrally located.
In 2007, the average price of one-bedroom flats at The Arch, above Kowloon Station, was HK$17,000 per sq ft.
The 64-storey The Masterpiece in Hanoi Road was developed by New World Development and the Urban Renewal Authority.
It is the second-tallest residential building in Hong Kong after The Cullinan, above Kowloon Station.
The one-bedroom flat is the smallest unit in the project.
“The buyer could get a second-hand luxury flat with at least 1,500 sq ft and three bedrooms in Mid-Levels” for the price, said Koh Keng-shing, managing director at Landscope Surveyors and Landscope Realty.
Even though average prices at housing estates such as Taikoo Shing are still down from their 1997 peak, property agents said luxury residential prices had already exceeded their 1997 levels. The city’s most expensive flat is a 7,088 sq ft unit at Branksome Crest in Mid-Levels, which sold for HK$240 million, or HK$39,786 per sq ft, in December 2007.
Flats previously peaked at about HK$20,000 per sq ft in 1997, Koh said.
The most expensive residential property in the city is a 3,300 sq ft house at 8 Severn Road on The Peak, which sold for HK$285 million, or HK$56,800 per sq ft, in June last year, making it the most expensive residential dwelling in Hong Kong and also Asia.
The new luxury developments in non-traditional luxury residential areas such as Tsim Sha Tsui and Kowloon Station are fetching higher prices than apartments in Mid-Levels and other high-end residential areas.
“Those projects have attracted new demand from mainland buyers and local investors, not the local end-users,” Tsang said. “Some of the projects are overpriced. It may be risky for the buyers.”
Tsang had confidence in the market outlook for luxury residential developments in traditional luxury areas as the supply was expected to remain low in the next few years.
Montblanc Meisterstück 146
合昌金筆火機公司
Hop Cheong Pens & Lighters Co.
香港中環德輔道中111號地下
G/F., 111 Des Voeux Road Central, Hong Kong.
Tel.:2544-2197, 2543-3689
Winner Pens Collection
華佑金筆行
中環德輔道中68號
萬宜大廈商場 110 號
Man Yee Arcade, Shop 110
68 Des Voeux Road Central, Hong Kong.
Tel.: 2710-8802
豐原行
Feng Yuan Co
G 21, Houston Centre,Tsimshatsui East, Kowloon, Hong Kong
尖沙咀東麼地道63號
好時中心 G21 店
Tel : 2366 1703
Fax : 2724 3906
Pen Gallery
G25, Star House, Tsimshatsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong
尖沙咀梳士巴利道3號
星光行 G25 店
Tel / Fax : 2375 8178
名筆館 Pens Museum
http://www.pensmuseum.com/
灣仔 : 香港灣仔港灣道1號會展廣場1樓101C號舖
Wanchai : Shop 101C, 1/F., Shopping arcade, Convention Plaza,
1 Harbour Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong
Tel. : 2511 1832
尖沙咀： 九龍尖沙咀廣東道33號中港城商場UG層95號舖
Tsim Sha Tsui : Shop no 95, UG/F., China Hong Kong City, 33 Canton Road.,
Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong
Tel. : 2151 0818
九龍灣： 德褔廣場II期318舖
Kowloon Bay: Shop 318, Telford Plaza Phase II, Kowloon, Hong Kong
Tel. : 2305 1955
沙田： 連城廣場K3舖(火車站樓上)
Shatin : K3, Citylink Plaza, KCRC House, New Territories, Hong Kong.
Tel. : 2681 0301
利昌金筆行
Nice Pen Company
九龍旺角彌敦道625號雅蘭中心二期東面地舖(山東街)
Shop East of G/F, Two Grand Tower, 625 Nathan Road, Mongkok, Kowloon.
Casablanca Co
尖沙咀 海防道 54A (MTR A1 清真寺出口 )
54A, Haiphong Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon. (MTR A1 Exit)
Tel. 2311-3212
廣蘭金筆行
Kwong Lan Pen Company
德輔道中285號A6舖
Shop A6, 285 Des Voeux Road Central, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong
Tel: 2544 2317
春記文具有限公司
Chun Kee Stationery Co. Ltd
G/F, 11 Lock Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon.
九龍尖沙咀樂道11號地下
Tel.: 2739 3960
源記文具
Yuen Kee
新界荃灣綠陽新邨商場2樓F14-15號
SHOP NO. F14-15, 1/F.
Luk Yeung Sun Chuen Shopping Centre,
Tsuen Wan, New Territories.
中南圖書文具有限公司
Chung Nam Book & Stationery Co. Ltd.
G/F, 2Q Sai Yeung Choi Street, Mongkok, Kowloon, Hong Kong.
香港九龍旺角西洋菜街2號Q地下
Tel: 2384 2430
Source: http://kmpn.blogspot.com/2009/03/pen-shops-in-hong-kong.html
HK recovering from global recession, says FS
Regina Leung and Agence France-Presse
Updated on Sep 08, 2009
Hong Kong’s economy was slowly recovering from the global recession, Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah said on Tuesday at the opening of the Asian Aerospace International Expo and Congress.
Tsang, who opened the three-day exposition at the AsiaWorld-Expo venue on Lantau Island, was upbeat about the economy.
“Recent economic data indicates that economies – including Hong Kong’s – are emerging from a severe recession, and are preparing for take off,” he said.
Tsang noted that the aviation sector had been hard hit by fluctuating fuel prices, cancelled or delayed orders, and falls in customers, cargo and profits.
But it was also an ideal time for the industry to explore new technologies and strategies to improve efficiency and reduce costs, he said.
“Asia, in particular China, is one of the world’s fastest growing regions for air transportation, with growing demand for aircraft and related equipment and services.
“This presents huge opportunities for all parties inside and outside the aviation industry,” Tsang said.
He said Hong Kong was an ideal place to host the expo as it had one of the world’s busiest airports.
“The city’s aviation network covers 150 destinations worldwide, including 40 mainland cities. Everyday, the Hong Kong International Airport handles more than 800 inbound and outbound flights,” he said.
The biennial meeting is hailed as one of the world’s most influential air shows. It was moved from Singapore to Hong Kong in 2007 to be closer to mainland, now one of the world’s fastest growing aviation markets.
“It’s the first time that China has put a face in front of the global aviation industry,” said Richard Thiele of Reed Exhibitions.
Thiele, Reed’s head of sales for aerospace and aviation, said despite world airlines being hurt by the global downturn, 10,000 visitors and 356 firms are expected to take part in Asian Aerospace.
Chinese media reports have estimated that the country’s airlines would need a total of 1,600 new passenger jets by the year 2020 and 3,000 by 2050, at a cost of billions of dollars.
Sunday March 29 2009
Letters to SCMP
Singaporeans have a high regard for Hong Kong and its citizens
I refer to the letter by Simon Morliere (‘Singapore is far better than Hong Kong in every way’, March 22).
I assume that Mr Morliere is just expressing his personal opinion and not the opinion of the thousands of expatriates, including Singaporeans, living and working in Hong Kong nor Singaporeans in general. It is rather sad that he chooses to see Hongkongers in this manner.
I have lived in Hong Kong for the past 11 years and I find Hongkongers intelligent, hardworking, enterprising, open-minded, innovative, charitable and, most importantly, very tolerant towards non-Hongkongers.
Hong Kong is probably one of the safest places to bring up a family, with its efficient police and security forces, very high standards of education that provide a multilingual medium of instruction and also a multi-ethnic living environment.
As a member of the Singapore Chamber of Commerce (Hong Kong), I am fortunate to have the opportunity to interact with Hong Kong people from different walks of life and I personally feel that Hongkongers are one of the friendliest and most caring people in the world.
They are fast and efficient in their work, and, as far as I know, Singaporeans do not have the impression that Hongkongers are people who talk only and take no action.
Singaporeans living in Hong Kong are very appreciative of the inclusive society that Hong Kong is, where visitors and residents originating from other countries are invariably treated well by Hongkongers.
Vincent Chow, honorary executive director, Singapore Chamber of Commerce (Hong Kong)
Salon International, London 18-20th October 2008
I’ve been looking for a hairdryer. Not the usual run of the mill ones which I’ve been using all my life, but one that can do a good job. One that is top of its class.
So one day I went to IL COLPO in Hong Kong and their hair dryers were very good. The stream of air was confidently strong but narrow, yet not uncomfortably hot. Better than the Braun or Philips that I used at home. I visited department stores to see whether they carried something like this. I tried and tested Vidal Sassoon (China), Philips (China), Babyliss (France) and Valera (Switzerland) but they couldn’t compare with the one at IL COLPO. So what on earth were they (and Toni & Guy) using?
Finally, I had my opportunity. When the IL COLPO hairstylist went off to tend to another client, I grabbed his hair dryer to check what brand it was. It had neither a label, model name nor number. Only engraved on the back of the handle on its shiny jet black plastic body were the words:
“Parlux – Made in Italy”
I went home and did a search on the internet – and because of the shape and size, I identified it as the Parlux 2000 Superturbo.
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I wanted to get it, but since then there has been an improved model – the Parlux 3200 Ionic which is 20% more expensive but adds ionic ions to the hot air – making your hair smoother and more shiny. Parlux is the best selling professional hair dryer in the UK.
But of course Parlux has competition. Namely, the T3 Tourmaline and the CHI Nano. But these competitors are not used by professional hair salons. not that I know of. There must be a reason. I read on a forum that the internal mechanism of CHI damages easily if you drop it. Parlux is designed for more heavy duty, daily use by professionals. Hence, if you use it only at home, it will last you for years.
Salon International, London 18-20th October 2008
Parlux 3200 User Reviews
http://forums.vogue.com.au/showthread.php?t=111535
http://www.makeuptalk.com/forums/f13/parlux-3200-hair-dryer-12042.html
Photos
http://www.justbeautifully.co.uk/parlux-hair-dryers-61148.php
Here’s the deal:
I bought the Parlux 3200 Ionic model for HK$590. And it is selling for 70 pounds in the UK (HK$900) and US$165 in the US (HK$1,287).
This product will save your time and energy on a daily basis and make your hair look better. If you would like to know where to buy it in HK, please contact me.
Just letting you know about this because I wish found out earlier. And if you don’t believe its performance, just drop by your nearest professional hair salon and see for yourself!
PARLUX S.p.A.
via Goldoni, 12
20090 Trezzano S/N
Milano – Italy
Singapore is far better than Hong Kong
Updated on Mar 22, 2009
I refer to the article “Singapore beats HK in survey of Asian expats”, March 12.
That “Singapore appears to have finally achieved its dream of being better than Hong Kong” was a highly laughable comment. Singapore has achieved the same status at the top for the past 10 years.
I am a European expat who stayed (or, more rightly, suffered) in Hong Kong for close to five years but chose to move to Singapore and obtained permanent resident status there (though I need to adjust my highly lucrative Hong Kong expat package in exchange).
My family and I are now enjoying the comforts, stability, safety and cleaner air of Singapore (plus the many more nice places and resorts that we can travel to in less than two hours, and the much more advanced and lively dining and entertainment options). This contrasts with the dirty and mundane, yet much more expensive Hong Kong.
But most important is the ease and efficiency of getting things done in a language I am more comfortable with, English. In fact, Singapore is so much more attractive than Hong Kong that I have the in-principle approval from our global headquarters to shut our office in Hong Kong and move it to Singapore, while maintaining a stronger presence in Shanghai.
Singapore beats Hong Kong in so many areas. Many friends are now making plans to move to Singapore after realising their misconceptions about the city.
Singaporeans may not be upfront with their thoughts and appear to be reserved, but I have made more local friends than I did in Hong Kong. At least, they are not like most arrogant but ignorant Hongkongers who think they know it all, and criticise and comment on almost everything and anything.
I can’t help but find most Hongkongers just a bunch of empty vessels, and definitely NATO (no action, talk only idiots – that’s how Singaporeans would describe Hongkongers).
Simon Morliere, Singapore
Source: http://dbgreen.org/
This was posted on Craigslist last year:
‘What am I doing wrong?
Okay, I’m tired of beating around the bush. I’m a beautiful (spectacularly beautiful) 25 year old girl. I’m articulate and classy. I’m not from New York. I’m looking to get married to a guy who makes at least half a million a year. I know how that sounds, but keep in mind that a million a year is middle class in New York City, so I don’t think I’m overreaching at all.
Are there any guys who make 500K or more on this board ? Any wives ? Could you send me some tips ? I dated a business man who made an average of around 200 – 250K. But that’s where I seem to hit a roadblock. $250,000 won’t get me to Central Park West. I know a woman in my yoga class who was married to an investment banker, and lives in Tribeca. She’s not as pretty as I am, nor is she a great genius. So what is she doing right ? How do I get to her level ?
Here are my questions specifically:
- Where do you single rich men hang out ? Give me specifics – bars, restaurants, gyms
- What are you looking for in a mate? Be honest guys, you won’t hurt my feelings
- Is there an age range I should be targeting ?
- Why are some of the women living lavish lifestyles on the Upper East Side so plain? I’ve seen really ‘Plain Jane’ boring types, who have nothing to offer incredibly wealthy guys. Then I’ve seen drop dead gorgeous girls in singles bars in the East Village. What’s the story there ?
- Lawyers, investment bankers, doctors. How much do those guys really make ? And where do the hedge fund guys hang out ?
- How do you rich guys decide on marriage vs. just a girlfriend ? I am looking for MARRIAGE ONLY.
Please hold your insults – I’m putting myself out there in an honest way. Most beautiful women are superficial – at least I’m being up front about it. I wouldn’t be searching for these kind of guys if I wasn’t able to match them – in looks, culture, sophistication, and keeping a nice hearth and home’.
An Investment Banker’s Response:
Dear Pers-431649184:
‘I read your posting with great interest and have thought meaningfully about your dilemma. I offer the following analysis of your predicament.
Firstly, I’m not wasting your time. I qualify as a guy who fits your bill – that is, I make more than $500K per year. That said, here’s how I see it:
Your offer, from the prospective of a guy like me, is a plain and simple crappy business deal. Here’s why. Cutting through all the B.S., what you suggest is a simple trade: you bring your looks to the party and I bring my money. Fine, simple. But here’s the rub, your looks will fade and my money will likely continue into perpetuity – in fact, it is very likely that my income will increase, but it is an absolute certainty that you won’t be getting any more beautiful!
So, in economic terms, you are a depreciating asset. Not only are you a depreciating asset, however, your depreciation accelerates! Let me explain – you’re 25 now and will likely remain pretty hot for the next 5 years, but less so each year. Then the fade begins in earnest. By 35 – stick a fork in you!
So, in Wall Street terms, we’d call you a trading position – not a buy and hold…hence the rub…marriage. It doesn’t make good business sense to ‘buy you’ (which is what you’re asking) – so I’d rather lease. In case you think I’m being cruel, I would say the following: if my money were to go away, so would you – so when your beauty fades I need an out too. It’s as simple as that. So the deal that makes sense for me is dating, not marriage.
Separately, I was taught early in my career about efficient markets. So, I wonder why a girl as ‘articulate, classy and spectacularly beautiful’ as you has been unable to find your sugar daddy. I find it hard to believe that, if you are as gorgeous as you say you are, your $500K man hasn’t found you – if only for a tryout.
By the way, you could always find a way to make your own money – and then we wouldn’t need to have this difficult conversation.
With all that said, I must say you’re going about it the right way. Classic ‘pump and dump’. I hope this is helpful, and if you want to enter into some sort of lease, please let me know’.