Hong Kong's public hospitals are ready to handle an expected rise in flu cases during the Lunar New Year, Hospital Authority (HA) chief executive Tony Ko said on Sunday (Jan. 26).

To welcome the Year of the Snake, the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HA) has put up festive New Year decorations featuring lovely pandas in its various commercial properties.

Financial Secretary Paul Chan has vowed to beef up efforts in promoting Hong Kong to the rest of the world, saying some of those attending the World Economic Forum in Davos have signaled their intention to set up shop in the SAR.

The head of the government's investment promotion agency on Sunday (Jan.26) said her office will focus on bringing in non-local companies that can "create a larger financial impact" in Hong Kong.

A University of Hong Kong (HKU) pediatrician on Sunday (Jan. 26) called on people to stay on the alert, saying the current influenza outbreak may worsen after the Lunar New Year holiday.

The Hong Kong Observatory issued special weather tips at 4:30 pm today (Jan. 25), predicting that a cold front currently located in the northern part of Guangdong will cross the coastal areas during the day tomorrow (Jan. 26).

Financial technology is the new frontier in Hong Kong's financial industry. The Legislative Council Secretariat's Policy Pulse of Consolidating Hong Kong's status as an international financial centre also mentions that Hong Kong has achieved remarkable success in the development of financial technology.

The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) today (Jan. 25) strongly condemned those United States (US) lawmakers again requesting a review, through a so-called "bill", of including a number of HKSARG officials, and a number of judges and prosecutors, in a so-called list of "sanctions" in an attempt to intimidate the HKSAR personnel concerned who safeguard national security, as well as the unfounded and biased remarks which deliberately misled the public and smeared the Hong Kong National Security Law (NSL).

Today, John Lee, accompanied by the Secretary for Home Affairs and the Secretary for Youth Affairs, led a caring team to visit grassroots families in Oi Man Estate in Ho Man Tin and also visited the shops in the estate.

According to the Hong Kong Tourism Board, they will host the Cathay International Chinese New Year Night Parade in Tsim Sha Tsui on the evening of the first day of the Lunar New Year (Jan. 29). It is expected that around 100,000 people will come to watch, with approximately half of them being tourists.

The Mark Six Chinese New Year Snowball draw for the Mark Six Lottery will be held on Feb 2 (the fifth day of the Lunar New Year), featuring a special jackpot of HK$150 million. If a single bet of HK$10 wins, the estimated jackpot prize can reach up to HK$188 million, making it the highest jackpot prize in history. It is also the largest-scale New Year Snowball draw event ever.

The Security Bureau (SB) today (Jan. 25) said that a Hong Kong resident who had been detained for illegal work in Myanmar was recently rescued and safely arrived in Thailand earlier. With the coordination by the SB's dedicated task force in Thailand over the past few days and the concerted efforts by different parties, the individual will return to Hong Kong next Monday (January 27) together with the dedicated task force.

Yesterday (Jan. 24), Kai Tak Sports Park held a large-scale drill, testing for the first time the maximum capacity of the main stadium, Kai Tak Arena, and Kai Tak Youth Sports Ground simultaneously. Mable Chan, Secretary for Transport and Logistics stated today (Jan. 25) on a radio program that the evacuation of the audience proceeded as expected.

During last year's presidential campaign, Trump threatened to impose a 60% tariff on all Chinese goods if elected. Recently, on his first day as the 47th President of the United States, he signed 78 executive orders, but none included the tariff measures he had frequently mentioned.

Kai Tak Sports Park is holding a large-scale drill today (Jan. 24), with the main stadium, Kai Tak Arena, and Kai Tak Youth Sports Ground all conducting tests simultaneously. It is expected that 63,000 people will participate, which is the maximum capacity for the three venues.