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Author Archives: hksar gov

FS attends G20 Leaders’ Summit in Osaka, Japan (with photo)

     The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, today (June 28) attended the Group of Twenty (G20) Leaders’ Summit in Osaka, Japan, as part of the delegation of the People’s Republic of China.

     The Summit this year covers a wide range of topics ranging from the global economy, trade and investment to innovation and employment. Mr Chan has attended different meetings.
      
     Tomorrow (June 29), Mr Chan will continue to take part in the G20 Leaders’ Summit and will return to Hong Kong in the evening.

Photo  
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East Asia

CHP investigates case of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli infection

     The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is today (June 28) investigating a case of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) infection, and hence reminded the public to maintain good personal, food and environmental hygiene against intestinal infections.

     The case involves a one-year-old boy with good past health, who has presented with fever and diarrhoea since June 18. He was admitted to a private hospital on the same day and was discharged on June 20. The patient has been in a stable condition all along.

     His stool specimen grew STEC upon laboratory testing.

     Initial enquiries of the CHP revealed that the patient had no travel history during the incubation period. Investigations are ongoing.

     “Escherichia coli (E. coli) is a bacterium that is commonly found in the gut of humans and warm-blooded animals. Most strains of E. coli are harmless. Some strains, however, such as STEC, can produce powerful toxins and cause severe food-borne disease. The most recognised serogroup of STEC is E. coli O157:H7,” a spokesman for the CHP explained.

     Preventive measures for STEC infection are similar to those recommended for other food-borne diseases. The public are advised to observe good personal and food hygiene:
 

  • Adopt the 5 Keys to Food Safety in handling food, i.e. Choose (choose safe raw materials), Clean (keep hands and utensils clean), Separate (separate raw and cooked food), Cook (cook thoroughly) and Safe Temperature (keep food at a safe temperature) to prevent food-borne diseases;
  • Wash hands properly with liquid soap and water before handling food, after handling raw meat or poultry and before eating, and after going to the toilet or changing diapers;
  • Cook food and boil water thoroughly before consumption. When cooking or reheating, the core temperature of the food should reach at least 75 degrees Celsius;
  • Avoid consumption of unpasteurised milk or undercooked food; and
  • Consult your doctor immediately if you have symptoms of STEC infection, particularly bloody diarrhoea.
     
     The public may visit the CHP’s STEC page for more information. read more

East Asia

Additional datasets available via Open API on HKMA’s Website

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:
 
     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced today that additional 60 sets of financial data published on the HKMA’s website are made available via Open Application Programming Interface (API) for free use by the public starting from today.
      
     To facilitate more convenient and efficient retrieval of information and data from the HKMA’s website by the public, as well as to set an example for the banking industry to promote the wide adoption of Open API, the HKMA has been opening up financial data and important information published on its website via API by phases since July 2018.  Following the opening up of 70 datasets earlier, the HKMA today opens up another 60 sets of financial data, covering statistics related to banking, monetary system, debt securities, etc.  This brings the total sets of APIs available on the HKMA’s website to 130 as originally planned.
      
     The HKMA will review the coverage of APIs on its website from time to time, and will launch more APIs in the future where appropriate.
      
     For more details, please visit the HKMA’s Open API portal (apidocs.hkma.gov.hk/). read more

East Asia