Hong Kong: Annual ‘Cinema Day’ gives local consumption a lift

Hong Kong’s annual “Cinema Day”, which fell on May 10 this year, drew more than 194,000 people to 53 movie theaters in the special administrative region, with tickets priced at HK$30 ($3.84) each.

There were over 1,700 screenings across the city, boasting a theater occupancy rate of 83 percent — higher than the figures for 2023 and last year. Although attendance was lower than the previous year’s 203,000, the Hong Kong Theatres Association deemed the turnout satisfactory, considering a 16 percent decrease in participating theaters.

Macao: City hosts insurance training for Portuguese-speaking experts

The Macao Special Administrative Region is hosting advanced training programs for 19 insurance experts from local and Portuguese-speaking economies, starting May 12.

Co-hosted by the Monetary Authority of Macao and the Portuguese Insurance and Pension Funds Supervisory Authority, the two-week program kicked off with a seminar focusing on the industry’s response to challenges from cutting-edge financial technology and artificial intelligence.

Guangzhou: Cooperation center for cultivating talent set up in Nansha district

A talent cooperation center for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area was inaugurated in Guangzhou’s Nansha district on May 10, marking a milestone in drawing professionals to the region.

The facility, which serves as the secretariat for an ecological alliance for fostering talent, has more than 50 professional institutions from Guangdong province, Hong Kong and Macao.

The alliance is dedicated to strengthening cooperation in talent exchanges, regulatory alignment, and creating better opportunities for entrepreneurial talents from the three regions. Branches had been set up in the two special administrative regions in December.

Shenzhen: Dapeng seals tourism deal with European travel giant

Shenzhen’s Dapeng New District has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with the hotel subsidiary of TUI Group — one of Europe’s largest travel enterprises — to develop the tourism industry.

Both sides will jointly set up a hotel cluster as a starting point to codevelop the entire industrial chain. Closer cooperation is expected in cruise tourism, aviation projects and the travel agency business. They also aim to launch more one-trip-multistop special tourism products in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

Zhuhai: More cross-boundary digital facilities launched on Hengqin

The Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone on Hengqin island has launched its Data Cross-Boundary Service Center and Large Model Compliance Guidance Center, as well as DeeCoModel — its first large model tailored to Portuguese-speaking countries and regions.

The facilities mark notable progress in propelling the digital economy’s development in the zone, and promoting the formation of an international digital trade hub. To date, the cooperation zone is home to 113 major digital economy core industry enterprises.

Foshan: Shunde Bridge opens, boosting transportation links in Foshan

Shunde Bridge, located in Foshan’s Shunde district, opened to traffic on May 8. With an investment of 2.51 billion yuan ($348.4 million), the channel serves as a key transportation infrastructure between the district’s southern and eastern areas.

The bridge is a boost to public transportation links between Shunde and other cities like Guangzhou and Shenzhen. It has the largest span among the cable-stayed bridges in Foshan — a total length of 2.3 kilometers and a main span of 626 meters.

Huizhou: City signs investment deal with Linde PLC for energy projects

Huizhou signed a letter of intent for investment with a North American branch of Linde PLC — a German global industrial gas and engineering company — during a visit led by Huizhou Mayor Chen Yuhang from May 4 to 11. The energy company plans to build a gas gathering port and a hydrogen energy project in Huizhou.

The delegation traveled to the United States and Japan to deepen exchanges and cooperation with the two countries and promote high-quality development.

Dongguan: Romania-bound electric buses pave way for European markets

Ninety-four electric buses, valued at 100 million yuan ($13.88 million), were transported from Dongguan Port to Romania on May 8. It marked a major stride for Chinese high-end products entering the European market with support from Dongguan’s maritime services.

Tailored for Romania, the buses meet the European nation’s pressing demand for high-capacity, energy-efficient and long-range vehicles, and will help to accelerate the modernization of public transportation in Romania and potentially throughout Europe.

Zhongshan: China Unicom launches 190 5G-A sites in Zhongshan

China Unicom has opened 190 5G-A sites in Zhongshan — one of the first 100 5G-A commercial cities in China. Major areas with high data traffic demand are covered, including light rail stations, universities, the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Link, and some economically vibrant towns, including Xiaolan, and the Zhongshan Torch High-tech Industrial Development Zone.

Compared with 5G, 5G-A is 10 times faster, with its maximum data download rate able to support innovative services, such as extended reality and naked-eye 3D, while its maximum data upload rate can assist the popularization of live broadcasting, and the symmetrical experience of holographic interaction.

Jiangmen: Tangkou offers 100 yuan monthly rent to lure cultural startups

Tangkou — a town in Jiangmen — will provide apartments with monthly rents of just 100 yuan ($13.88) for online writers and video creation teams. The offer is among various measures the local government is taking to attract cultural startups in its effort to build a digital town. The measures were launched on May 9 at a signing ceremony to establish an incubation center for Guangdong online literature startups at Tangkou.

Online literature has become one of Jiangmen’s burgeoning industries. Since the city’s online literature creation committee was created in 2021, the number of members has gone up by 120 percent.

Zhaoqing: Zhaoqing extends over 16.6b yuan in loans to support SMEs

Responding to the central government’s call to support small and medium enterprises, the Zhaoqing authorities have extended loans of over 16.6 billion yuan ($2.3 billion) by May 9, assisting 8,838 companies after visiting more than 229,100 since October. The city has also adopted various measures to enhance financing, empower data platforms, and optimize financial services.

A government task force has been established to aid foreign trade companies in navigating the effects of international tariffs, and has conducted visits to explain financing and export credit insurance policies, taking into account SMEs’ needs.