〈The Standard, Mar 4, 2023〉After the hong Kong government lowered stamp duty for first-time buyers, small and medium-sized homes saw transactions rise in the secondary market.

Yuen Long reported six units traded on February 22, when the stamp duty cut was announced in the Budget, said Centaline Property's deputy regional sales manager, Ken Wong Kan-hok.

Inquiries on home purchases surged and the home viewing appointments last weekend increased up to three times week on week.

Victor Chung, associate district manager at Midland Realty, said 15 deals were recorded in Tsuen Wan in one day after the Budget announcement, with 70 percent at HK$9 million or below.

〈Hong Kong Business, Mar 3, 2023〉The totalretail sales value hit $36.2b in January, an increase of 7% from the same month in 2022.

Of the total sales value, 8.2% or $3b was from online sales. Compared with a year ago, the online retail sales value dropped 4.2%.

In the same month, the value of sales of other consumer goods not elsewhere classified increased by 6% YoY.

Other retail outlets which recorded sales value increase were jewellery, watches and clocks, and valuable gifts (+23.1% in value); electrical goods and other consumer durable goods not elsewhere classified (+13.4%); wearing apparel (+14.4%); commodities in department stores (+3.9%); medicines and cosmetics (+15.3%); motor vehicles and parts (+1.3%); footwear, allied products and other clothing accessories (+16%); Chinese drugs and herbs (+38.5%); books, newspapers, stationery and gifts (+20.3%); and optical shops (+13.8%).

〈Asian Post, Mar 2, 2023〉Hong Kong ranked 5th amongst the top markets for super-prime and ultra-prime properties globally, Knight Frank reported.

The Pearl of the Orient, alongside Singapore, was the only two markets in Asia that made the top 10.

According to the report, Hong Kong had 28 ultra-prime transactions and 125 super-prime transactions for the year.

In Hong Kong, US$1M can buy 31 square metres of prime property, making it amongst the priciest markets

〈Reuters, Mar 1, 2023〉Major property developer China Vanke said on Thursday it had raised 3.92 billion Hong Kong dollars ($499 million) in a share placement in Hong Kong, in the first test of investor appetite towards a mainland developer share sale in 2023.

State-backed Vanke said in a filing that it sold 300 million shares at HK$13.05 per share, versus their offer price range of between HK$12.93 to HK$13.20 apiece, according to the term sheets of the deal launched on Wednesday and seen by Reuters.

The pricing was at a 6.12% discount to Vanke’s Wednesday close of HK$13.90.

〈The Standard, Feb 28, 2023〉Wheelock Properties' Koko Rosso in Lam Tin has received over 5,500 checks for 160 flats to be launched in tomorrow's second round of sales, making them 33 times oversubscribed.

And Sun Hung Kai Properties (0016) plans to launch the first round of sales for Phase 2B of Novo Land in Tuen Mun this weekend at the earliest after 352 units on the first three price lists were 16 times oversubscribed with over 6,000 checks.

Henderson Land Development (0012) announced the sale of eight flats at One Innovale-Archway in Fanling North on Friday on a first-come, first-served basis.

The flats involved are sized between 208 and 329 square feet with a 1 to 4 percent raise in selling price, with the cheapest unit at HK$3.13 million.