Hong Kong is preparing for a significant influx of visitors during the upcoming Spring Festival holiday, with an estimated 1.43 million tourists from the Chinese mainland expected to visit, according to Rosanna Law Shuk-pui, the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government.
Law said that the visitor forecast comes from the city's Immigration Department.
Estimates from the Travel Industry Authority of Hong Kong and other industry sources project that approximately 2,200 tour groups will arrive in Hong Kong during the nine-day holiday that runs from Feb. 15 to 23. This is an increase in the average daily number of inbound tour groups compared to last year's May Day and National Day holidays.
In preparation, an inter-departmental working group of the HKSAR Government held a meeting on Friday to coordinate and oversee the preparatory work of various departments for receiving the visitors. The objective is to ensure smooth operations across all sectors and provide a high-quality experience for all tourists visiting Hong Kong.
Hong Kong expecting 1.43 mln mainland tourists during Spring Festival holiday
Global food commodity prices climbed for a second consecutive month in March, driven mainly by higher energy costs linked to escalating conflict in the Middle East, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said in report released on Friday.
The FAO Food Price Index, which tracks monthly changes in the international prices of a basket of globally traded food commodities, averaged 128.5 points in March, up 2.4 percent from February and 1.0 percent above its level a year ago.
According to the report, the FAO Vegetable Oil Index and Sugar Price Index showed the largest increases, up 5.1 percent and 7.2 percent, respectively.
The FAO Cereal Price Index increased by 1.5 percent from the previous month, driven primarily by higher world wheat prices, which rose 4.3 percent.
The FAO Meat Price Index rose by 1.0 percent from the previous month, and the FAO All-Rice Price Index declined by 3.0 percent in March, according to the report.
FAO stated that rising energy and fertilizer prices have been driving up agricultural input costs.
If the conflict stretches beyond 40 days, farmers will have to choose to farm the same with fewer inputs, plant less, or switch to less intensive fertilizer crops, according to FAO Chief Economist Maximo Torero.
These choices will hit future yields and shape food supply and commodity prices for the rest of this year and beyond, Torero said.
Global food prices rise for 2nd consecutive month in March amid Middle East conflict: FAO
