Change in Hong Kong Quarantine Rules
Sources in Hong Kong had been telling me that the Hong Kong government was going to announce quarantine policy changes in November. It looks that the timetable has been moved up as the announcement was made on August 8. Going forward, visitors will quarantine in a hotel room for 3 days instead of 7.
Here is how Bloomberg described the old policy:
Hong Kong currently requires everyone arriving in the city to test negative for Covid within 48 hours of departure and on arrival, and then spend a week isolated in a hotel to ensure an infection wasn’t missed during the incubation period. The rules have put a stranglehold on visitors to the once booming Asian financial hub and made international travel difficult for those who live in the city.
“Hong Kong to Announce Hotel Quarantine Cut as Soon as Monday,” Chi Yui Siu, August 5, 2022
Most business travelers I talk with want to see an elimination of the policy rather than a change. We’ll have to see what comes next.
China Launches World’s Biggest Container Ship
When you thought container ships couldn’t get any bigger, China has launched an even bigger one, Named the MSC Tessa; it is 1310 feet long and can carry the equivalent of 12,000 40-foot containers. It is the first of four to be built. To give you an idea of how big that container ship is, a modern aircraft carrier is 1092 feet long.
“Logistics Managers’ Index“: Supply Chain Capacity Increased, and Shipping Costs Declined in July
The July Logistics Managers’ Index Report measures expansion in supply chain capacity from ships to trucks to warehouses. The lower the expansion, the less pressure there is on the supply chain. The lower the pressure, the lower the costs of warehousing and shipping.
It is, therefore, noteworthy that the July index showed a decline of -4.3% from June. That is the lowest reading since May 2020.
As the report notes
Fueling this deflationary pressure are levels of growth in available Transportation Capacity that we have not seen since April of 2019.
“Transportation capacity rises again in July, pricing declines, report says”
