GBA Briefs

Hong Kong: SAR adds 16 destinations to the high Speed Rail

The Hong Kong Section of the High Speed Rail has added 16 stations to its list of Chinese mainland destinations, including the ancient city of Xi'an in Shaanxi province — home to the world-famous Terracotta Warriors.

With the additions, the special administrative region has more than doubled the number of stations served on the rail network to 93 — up from 44 when the service started in 2018.

A new high speed rail route linking the SAR with Xi'an, taking in intermediate stations in Shaanxi, Henan, Hubei, Hunan and Guangdong provinces, entered service on Sunday. The travel time in either direction is less than 11 hours.

The route to Shanghai's Hongqiao International Airport now also includes three stops at Huangshan, Hangzhou and Suzhou all of which are popular tourist attractions on the mainland.

Macao: Incentives to attract young Macao workers to Hengqin

Eligible young workers from the Macao Special Administrative Region employed in the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone on Hengqin Island can apply for a monthly subsidy of 4,000 yuan ($545) for a maximum of three years from Feb 1.

In addition, those with vocational training and evaluation certificates recognized by relevant authorities in Guangdong province are eligible for a separate one-off costs subsidy of 30 percent, according to interim measures issued by the zone's Livelihood Affairs Bureau on Dec 31.

Incentives for employers hiring young Macao workers include a 1,000-yuan reward for each new worker hired, an additional one-off bonus of 200,000 yuan if the number of workers hired reaches 30, and full reimbursement for an employee's social insurance premium payments.

Guangzhou: One-stop service center to help SARs' businesses

Guangzhou's Tianhe district has opened a one-stop service center to help Hong Kong and Macao businesspeople operate in the Guangdong provincial capital.

Located just a stone's throw from Guangzhou East Railway Station, the 38-square-meter facility is designed for the convenience of entrepreneurs who have just set foot on Guangzhou from the two SARs and beyond.

Manned by three full-time employees fluent in Cantonese and English, the center offers various services, including the provision of related information, emergency assistance and aid relating to government services.

Shenzhen: Passenger traffic at Bao'an intl airport hits 5-year high

Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport saw a record 5.5 million inbound and outbound passenger trips made last year — a 100.3-percent increase over 2023 and the highest in nearly five years.

As China continues to widen its visa-free policy, more overseas visitors are interested in coming to China for tourism and business.

Foreign travelers made 225,000 inbound trips through Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport visa-free in 2024 — up by more than 538 percent year-on-year. The top five source markets were Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, South Korea and Germany.

Zhuhai: Direct trade corridor with Latin America launched

A cargo ship carrying agricultural products, printing ink and induction stoves left Zhuhai's Gaolan Port for Brazil recently, marking the inaugural voyage of the Zhuhai Gaolan Port-Brazil route and the establishment of a new trade corridor between the southern Guangdong city and Latin America.

Vessels using the route have a capacity of 77,000 metric tons and a designed speed of 15 knots, or 27.78 kilometers per hour. Equipped with dehumidifiers and other facilities, the cargo holds are dry and well-sealed to ensure the quality and safety of goods like agricultural supplies.

The route is scheduled to operate every two months, with plans to adjust the frequency based on the results of the inaugural voyage and market demand.

Foshan: Marathon to promote sports economy and industries

More than 15,000 runners from the Chinese mainland and overseas took part in a marathon in Foshan last week as the city strives to promote its sports economy and propel other industries.

The event — an A1-class race in which participants' grades and records are recognized by the Chinese Athletics Association — included a five-kilometer run, a half-marathon and a marathon.

In a bid to promote other industries, a food carnival was also held, offering participants a variety of local food to publicize Foshan's cuisine.

Huizhou: New train service to HK's West Kowloon Station

A new train service was launched from Huizhou North Railway Station to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region's West Kowloon Station on Sunday.

The train leaves Huizhou at 10:15 am daily and takes 72 minutes to arrive in the HKSAR.

In addition, a high-speed sleeper train service between Huizhou North Railway Station and Shanghai has also gone into operation, bringing the station's number of trains in service to 178.

Dongguan: Boost for city's cultural, sports, tourism sectors

Projects worth more than 11 billion yuan ($1.5 billion) were signed at an investment promotion conference in Dongguan for the cultural, sports and tourism sectors on Jan 3, covering creative design, digital culture, integrated cultural tourism, modern sports, and the low-altitude economy.

The meeting saw more than 300 business and industry representatives taking part, including those from the nation's top 30 companies in the cultural industry and the top 20 in tourism.

Credit products and services were backed by financial supporting measures from the Dongguan branch of the Bank of China and the Dongguan municipal bureau of culture, radio, television, tourism and sports.

Zhongshan: Delegation to visit UAE, Saudi Arabia in trade drive

Representatives of more than 100 Zhongshan companies aiming to tap into markets in the Middle East attended a briefing held by the city's bureau of commerce last week.

The bureau said it will organize a trade delegation to the United Arab Emirates on Jan 13, to be followed by another to Saudi Arabia in April, aiming to make Zhongshan's enterprises more competitive.

Exports from Zhongshan to the Middle East grew by 15 percent in the first 11 months of last year, compared with the same period in 2023.

Wang Jin, deputy director of the bureau, said Zhongshan will continue to promote exchanges with global trade organizations and help businesses explore overseas markets, especially the Middle East, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Latin America and Africa.

Jiangmen: City moves to attract talent, fosters industrial innovation

Jiangmen has implemented measures to attract top-notch professionals and promote industrial innovation.

Eligible undergraduates and postgraduates are entitled to living subsidies of 24,000 yuan ($3,276) and 48,000 yuan, respectively, if they choose to work or start a business in the city. Those working in Jiangmen enterprises and rated as in urgent demand will receive a comprehensive subsidy of up to 1.5 million yuan.

Jiangmen is pulling out all the stops to promote high-quality development of its industries. Research is being carried out to assess the needs of enterprises, and organize cooperative programs among universities and enterprises to cultivate professionals to meet the requirements of businesses.

Zhaoqing: Creating an ideal business climate tops city's agenda

Zhaoqing has maintained a high ranking in Guangdong province's business environment for five consecutive years.

The city was placed in the second tier in the province, along with Foshan, Zhuhai and Dongguan, in the 2024 business environment review published by the Guangdong Provincial Development and Reform Commission recently.

Zhaoqing ranked first in processing construction project planning permit applications, achieving a high acceptance rate of 99.58 percent, and leads in tax refund efficiency, with an average waiting time for an export tax refund of a mere 0.11 weeks and 0.44 weeks for erroneous overpayment refunds.

Zhaoqing had 400,000 business entities as of December — a 3.17 percent year-on-year rise — while the number of enterprises alone reached 77,385 — an increase of 6.63 percent over 2023.