The Hong Kong government will conduct a consultation on its slew of pro-baby incentives amid persistently low birth rates, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu has said, noting that delayed marriage and cultural shifts are limiting the effectiveness of such policies. The number of registered births in Hong Kong hit a historic low of 31,100 in 2025, despite a range of government initiatives aimed at boosting the city’s fertility rate. The HK$20,000 (US$2,552) newborn baby bonus, introduced in 2023,...

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu has said Hong Kong’s Northern Metropolis will adopt a multi-focused strategy to drive advances in technology, industry and education, while helping the city overcome its bottleneck in talent attraction. Lee also said that the megaproject would need early success stories to attract mainland Chinese and international investors, with the Hetao cooperation zone set to be the first such successful draw. Spanning about 30,000 hectares (74,130 acres) near the border...