The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:

     The spokesperson for Siu Lam Hospital made the following announcement today (November 15):
 
     Seven patients (aged 42 to 69) and a staff member in a male ward for severe intellectual disability presented with respiratory symptoms since November 10. Appropriate viral tests were arranged for the patients and the test results for six patients were positive for Rhinovirus. The patients concerned are being treated under isolation with stable condition. The staff member has recovered and resumed duty.
 
     Admission to the ward has been suspended and restricted visiting has been imposed. Infection control measures have already been stepped up according to established guidelines. All other patients in the ward are under close surveillance.
 
     The cases have been reported to the Hospital Authority Head Office and the Centre for Health Protection for necessary follow-up.

     The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is today (November 15) investigating an outbreak of acute gastroenteritis (AGE) at a primary school in Kowloon Tong, and hence reminded the public and management of institutions to maintain personal and environmental hygiene against AGE.

     The outbreak involves 12 boys and eight girls aged 9 to 10, who developed vomiting and diarrhoea since November 13. Nineteen sought medical attention and one of them required hospitalisation for management. All patients have been in a stable condition.

     Officers of the CHP conducted a site visit and provided health advice to the staff of the school concerning proper and thorough disinfection, proper disposal of vomitus, and personal and environmental hygiene. The school has been put under medical surveillance.
 
     The CHP's investigations are ongoing.
 
     A spokesman for the CHP advised members of the public to take heed of the following preventive measures against gastroenteritis:
 

• Ensure proper personal hygiene;
• Wash hands thoroughly before handling food and eating, after using the toilet or after changing diapers;
• Wear gloves when disposing of vomitus or faecal matter, and wash hands afterwards;
• Clean and disinfect contaminated areas or items promptly and thoroughly with diluted household bleach (by adding one part of bleach containing 5.25 per cent sodium hypochlorite to 49 parts of water). Wash hands thoroughly afterwards;
• Maintain good indoor ventilation;
• Pay attention to food hygiene;
• Use separate utensils to handle raw and cooked food;
• Avoid food that is not thoroughly cooked;
• Drink boiled water; and
• Do not patronise unlicensed food premises or food stalls.

     
     The public may visit the CHP's website (www.chp.gov.hk) or call the Health Education Hotline (2833 0111) for more information. 

     The rise in protectionism and the recent developments in international trade present unprecedented challenges to the multilateral trading system (MTS) embodied in the World Trade Organization (WTO). Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) members should redouble efforts to contain the escalating trade conflicts through constructive dialogues.
 
     The Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Edward Yau, made the above remarks at a plenary session of the 30th APEC Ministerial Meeting in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, today (November 15).
 
     Themed "Improving Connectivity, Deepening Regional Economic Integration", the plenary session was attended by ministers of 21 member economies. They exchanged views on the state of regional and global economies and efforts to deepen regional economic integration.
 
     "With the likely escalation of trade frictions, the uncertainties in the external environment have increased markedly. This could weigh on the global economic sentiment as well as trade and investment growth.  
 
     "We must not underestimate the unprecedented challenges facing the MTS with the WTO at its core. All of us therefore have strong vested interest in upholding and strengthening the WTO, instead of letting it slowly slide into marginalisation," Mr Yau said.
 
     "Hong Kong, China supports efforts in achieving the Bogor Goals and deeper economic integration in the Asia-Pacific region. We are committed to pursuing Free Trade Agreements with our trading partners, and to pursuing the long-term vision of the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific as a concrete step towards greater regional economic integration," he added.
 
     On the sidelines of the Ministerial Meeting, Mr Yau met with the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment of Australia, Mr Simon Birmingham, to discuss the Free Trade Agreement and the Investment Agreement between Hong Kong and Australia. They signed a Declaration of Intent on the successful conclusion of negotiations after the meeting.
 
     Mr Yau also met with the Minister for Trade and Export of Growth of New Zealand, Mr David Parker; the Minister of International Trade and Industry of Malaysia, Mr Darell Leiking; the Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism of Peru, Mr Rogers Valencia; and the Vice Minister of Trade and Director General of International Economic Affairs of Chile, Mr Rodrigo Yanez Benitez. They had useful exchanges on bilateral trade and economic relations as well as issues of mutual concern.
 
     Mr Yau will continue to hold bilateral meetings with ministers of member economies tomorrow (November 16) and attend a discussion session of the APEC CEO Summit on Saturday (November 17).

              

     The Census and Statistics Department (C&SD) published today (November 15) the November 2018 issue of the "Hong Kong Monthly Digest of Statistics" (HKMDS).

     Apart from providing up-to-date statistics, this issue also contains two feature articles entitled "Dependency Trend in Hong Kong" and "Human Capital in Hong Kong".

"Dependency Trend in Hong Kong"

     An ageing trend of the Hong Kong population was observed in the past 30 years or so. The median age of the population (excluding foreign domestic helpers) increased from 26.7 in 1982 to 45.3 (provisional) in 2018. Analyses of the changing structure of the population in terms of age and economic activity status are crucial for understanding the dependency trend in Hong Kong. This feature article analyses the dependency trend in Hong Kong through various indicators.

     For enquiries about this feature article, please contact the Household Statistics Analysis Section, C&SD (Tel: 2887 5208; email: ghs@censtatd.gov.hk).

"Human Capital in Hong Kong"

     Human capital development has long been seen as one of the thrusts for enhancing competitiveness and sustaining economic development of an economy. This feature article focuses on two groups in human capital, viz. persons with post-secondary education and persons working as professionals/associate professionals, who are crucial to the development of a knowledge-based economy.

     For enquiries about this feature article, please contact the Science and Technology Statistics Section, C&SD (Tel: 3903 7282; email: stb1@censtatd.gov.hk).

     Published in bilingual form, the HKMDS is a compact volume of official statistics containing about 140 tables. It collects up-to-date statistical series on various aspects of the social and economic situation of Hong Kong. Topics include population; labour; external trade; National Income and Balance of Payments; prices; business performance; energy; housing and property; government accounts, finance and insurance; and transport, communications and tourism. For selected key statistical items, over 20 charts depicting the annual trend in the past decade and quarterly or monthly trend in the recent two years are also available. Users can download the Digest free of charge at the website of the C&SD (www.censtatd.gov.hk/hkstat/sub/sp460.jsp?productCode=B1010002).

     Enquiries about the contents of the Digest can be directed to the Statistical Information Services Section of the C&SD (Tel: 2582 4738; email: gen-enquiry@censtatd.gov.hk).

     A man was fined $8,000 at the Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts today (November 15) for contravening the Hotel and Guesthouse Accommodation Ordinance.
           
     The courts heard that in January this year, officers of the Office of the Licensing Authority (OLA), the Home Affairs Department, inspected a suspected unlicensed guesthouse on Nathan Road in Tsim Sha Tsui. During the inspection, the OLA officers posed as lodgers and successfully rented a room in the guesthouse on a daily basis.
      
     According to the OLA's records, the guesthouse did not possess a licence under the Ordinance on the day of inspection. The man responsible for managing the premise was charged with contravening section 5(1) of the Ordinance.
      
     A department spokesman stressed that operating or managing an unlicensed guesthouse is a criminal offence and will lead to a criminal record. Upon conviction, the offender is liable to a maximum fine of $200,000 and two years' imprisonment.
           
     The spokesman appealed to anyone with information about suspected unlicensed guesthouses to report it to the OLA through the hotline (Tel: 2881 7498), by email (hadlaenq@had.gov.hk), by fax (2504 5805) using the report form downloaded from the OLA website (www.hadla.gov.hk), or through the mobile application "Hong Kong Licensed Hotels and Guesthouses".