​     In response to the National Security Education Day on April 15, the Security Bureau's eight disciplined services and auxiliary services will hold open days in their training schools, headquarters or divisional premises on April 13 (Saturday) and April 14 (Sunday) to deepen the public's understanding of the services as well as their work and achievements in safeguarding national security. Starting from tomorrow (March 15), members of the public can register for free admission tickets via the relevant disciplined services' websites or mobile applications. Admission ticket is not required for the open days of the auxiliary services.

     The Hong Kong Police College, the Immigration Service Institute of Training and Development, the Hong Kong Correctional Services Academy and the Kai Tak Division of the Government Flying Service will be opened to the public on April 13, while the Hong Kong Customs College, the Fire and Ambulance Services Academy, the Civil Aid Service Headquarters and the Auxiliary Medical Service Headquarters will hold open days on April 14.

     Various events will be held by the services on the open days, including flag raising ceremonies, Chinese-style foot drills, tactics and rescue drills, displays of firearms and equipment, working dogs' demonstrations, virtual reality experiences and game booths. These activities will help members of the public learn more about the services' work in preventing and defending against national security risks and raise public awareness of national security and the requirement to abide by the law.

     Members of the public are welcome to visit the websites or mobile applications of the relevant services for more information on the open days, and register to obtain tickets. Successful applicants will receive a notification from the organiser.

     Open day venues on April 13 (Saturday):

     Open day venues on April 14 (Sunday):

     Hongkong Post announced today (March 14) that, as advised by the postal administration of Australia, due to the impact of severe weather, mail delivery services to Western Australia for areas with the postcodes listed below are subject to delay.
 

     According to the provisional results of a survey released today (March 14) by the Census and Statistics Department (C&SD), the index of industrial production for manufacturing industries as a whole increased by 4.1% in the fourth quarter of 2023 compared with the same quarter of 2022, following a year-on-year increase of 4.3% in the third quarter of 2023. The corresponding producer price index increased by 2.7% in the fourth quarter of 2023 compared with the same quarter of 2022, following a year-on-year increase of 3.0% in the third quarter of 2023.
 
     The index of industrial production for sewerage, waste management and remediation activities increased by 0.5% in the fourth quarter of 2023 compared with the same quarter of 2022, following a year-on-year increase of 2.4% in the third quarter of 2023. The corresponding producer price index decreased by 0.3% in the fourth quarter of 2023 compared with the same quarter of 2022, as against a year-on-year increase of 2.3% in the third quarter of 2023.

     Indices of industrial production reflect changes in the volume of local industrial output after discounting the effect of price changes. The price changes are measured by the producer price indices compiled from data on producer prices of selected industrial goods/services collected in the same survey.
 
     Comparing the industrial production in respect of major manufacturing industries in the fourth quarter of 2023 with the same quarter of 2022, increases in output volume were recorded for all major manufacturing industries. The food, beverages and tobacco industry had the largest increase in output volume (+5.5%), followed by the metal, computer, electronic and optical products, machinery and equipment industry (+2.5%), the paper products, printing and reproduction of recorded media industry (+1.4%), and the textiles and wearing apparel industry (+0.5%).
 
     On a seasonally adjusted basis, the index of industrial production for manufacturing industries as a whole decreased by 0.5% in the fourth quarter of 2023 compared with the third quarter of 2023.
 
     For 2023 as a whole, the indices of industrial production for manufacturing industries as well as sewerage, waste management and remediation activities increased by 3.7% and 1.4% respectively compared with 2022.
 
     Producer price indices reflect changes in the prices of local output. They measure changes in the actual prices (net of any discounts or rebates allowed to buyers, plus any surcharges) received by producers for their output. Transportation and other incidental charges are not included.
 
     Comparing the fourth quarter of 2023 with the same quarter of 2022, increases in producer prices were recorded mainly in the metal, computer, electronic and optical products, machinery and equipment industry (+3.4%), the food, beverages and tobacco industry (+1.6%), and the textiles and wearing apparel industry (+1.2%). On the other hand, a decrease in producer price was recorded in the paper products, printing and reproduction of recorded media industry (-0.7%).
 
     For 2023 as a whole, the producer price index for manufacturing industries increased by 1.6%, while that for sewerage, waste management and remediation activities remained virtually unchanged compared with 2022.
 
     Table 1 shows the year-on-year percentage changes in the indices of industrial production by selected industry grouping. Table 2 shows the year-on-year percentage changes in the producer price indices for the industrial sector by selected industry grouping.
 
     The revised figures on indices of industrial production and producer price indices for the industrial sector for the fourth quarter of 2023 and the whole year of 2023 will be released at the website of the C&SD (www.censtatd.gov.hk/en/page_8000.html) and relevant publications of the Department starting from April 19, 2024.
 
     Users can browse and download the reports "Quarterly Index of Industrial Production, 4th Quarter 2023" (www.censtatd.gov.hk/en/EIndexbySubject.html?pcode=B1070002&scode=310) and "Quarterly Producer Price Index for Industrial Sector, 4th Quarter 2023" (www.censtatd.gov.hk/en/EIndexbySubject.html?pcode=B1070003&scode=280) at the website of the C&SD.
 
     For enquiries about indices of industrial production and producer price indices, please contact the Industrial Production Statistics Section of the C&SD (Tel: 3903 7247; email: ind-production@censtatd.gov.hk).
 

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:

     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) today (March 14) announced the launch of Phase 2 of the e-HKD Pilot Programme, with a view to further exploring innovative use cases for an e-HKD in Hong Kong.

     The HKMA completed Phase 1 of the e-HKD Pilot Programme in October 2023 and had studied domestic retail use cases in various areas such as programmable payments, settlement of tokenised assets, and offline payments. Building on the success and experience of Phase 1, the next phase will delve deeper into select pilots from Phase 1 where an e-HKD could add unique value, namely programmability, tokenisation and atomic settlement, as well as explore new use cases that have not been covered in the previous phase. 

     An enhanced e-HKD sandbox, leveraged on the wholesale central bank digital currency (wCBDC) sandbox to be built under Project Ensemble, will support Phase 2 of the e-HKD Pilot Programme to accelerate the prototyping, development and testing of use cases by pilot participants, as well as facilitate the study of interoperability and interbank settlement between e-HKD and other forms of tokenised money.

     Research on the e-HKD will continue to underpin the HKMA's broader work in exploring the roles central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) could play in a future digital money landscape. The HKMA has been conducting a number of in-depth research projects with the CBDC Expert Group on topics including programmability, privacy and interoperability. The outcomes and insights gained from both phases of the e-HKD Pilot Programme and the researches by the CBDC Expert Group will facilitate the HKMA's study on the possible implementation of an e-HKD. The HKMA will also continue to engage local and international stakeholders regarding the latest development of CBDCs.

     Organisations interested in participating in Phase 2 of the e-HKD Pilot Programme should submit their applications on or before May 17, 2024. Further details about the application process can be found on the HKMA website.

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:
 
     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) released today (March 14) the key analytical accounts of the Exchange Fund at the end of February 2024.
      
     Foreign assets, representing the external assets of the Exchange Fund, increased during the month by HK$21.0 billion to HK$3,532.9 billion.
      
     The Monetary Base, comprising Certificates of Indebtedness, Government‑issued currency notes and coins in circulation, the balance of the banking system and Exchange Fund Bills and Notes issued, amounted to HK$1,909.8 billion.
      
     Claims on the private sector in Hong Kong amounted to HK$292.6 billion.
      
     Foreign liabilities amounted to HK$22.4 billion.
      
     The analytical accounts of the Exchange Fund are released in accordance with the International Monetary Fund's Special Data Dissemination Standard (SDDS) and are referred to as the Analytical Accounts of the Central Bank under SDDS (Annex).
 
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     At present, four press releases relating to the Exchange Fund's data are issued by the HKMA each month. Three of these releases are issued to disseminate monetary data in accordance with the International Monetary Fund's SDDS. The fourth press release, on the Exchange Fund's Abridged Balance Sheet and Currency Board Account, is made in accordance with the HKMA's policy of maintaining a high level of transparency. For the month of March 2024, the scheduled dates for issuing the press releases are as follows: