HK permanent residents to receive 10,000 HKD cash handout from gov't

HONG KONG - Eligible Hong Kong permanent residents can register for the government's cash handout of 10,000 HK dollars (about 1,290 US dollars) from June 21 and will receive the money as soon as July 8, Hong Kong's financial chief announced on Monday.

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government earlier unveiled a string of measures to relieve the public's financial burden amid economic hardship, including handing out 10,000 HK dollars to each Hong Kong permanent resident aged 18 or above.

Financial Secretary of the HKSAR government Paul Chan said at a press conference on Monday that the measure, involving about 71 billion HK dollars in expenditure, is expected to benefit about 7 million people.

On Feb 26, Chan delivered the HKSAR government's annual budget, announcing a string of measures worth over 120 billion Hong Kong dollars in total, which included tax deduction, cash handout, introducing low-interest loan to small and medium enterprises, to tackle tough economic situation.