Hong Kong  - Sixty-four per cent of Hong Kong residents believe tougher economic times lie ahead because of the global financial meltdown, according to a survey released Monday.

Only 3 per cent of the 1,000 people interviewed said they thought the economy would improve in the short-term while 32 per cent said they expected it to neither improve or deteriorate.

Hong Kong  - A windsurfer whose sail broke was blown from Chinese waters into a Hong Kong bay after six hours adrift at sea, a news report said Monday.

Businessman Sherman Kwan paddled with his hands through three-metre high waves across some of the world's busiest shipping lanes in a six-hour odyssey, the Hong Kong Standard reported.

A container ship passed within 30 metres of him and a second also nearly hit him before he found his way to safety in a quiet Hong Kong bay on Saturday night, the newspaper said.

Hong Kong  - Hong Kong shares shot up by more than 5 per cent to break through the 15,000 point barrier in early trading Monday.

The blue-chip Hang Seng Index rose by 762.86 points, or 5.36 per cent, to 15,006.29 in the first 45 minutes of trading of the week.

The early gains consolidated a 3 per cent rise in share prices Friday in response to a cut in local interest rates aimed at freeing up capital.

Hong Kong - Hong Kong shares regained some lost ground Friday as an unexpected cut in local interest rates saw them end the week with a climb of more than 3 per cent.

The blue-chip Hang Seng Index gained 453.39 points or 3.29 per cent to end the week on 14,243.43 points, despite falling more than 5 per cent in morning trading. Turnover was 48.8 billion Hong Kong dollars (6.29 billion US dollars).

Hong Kong  - Letters calling for higher pay signed by 19,000 Hong Kong police officers, more than two thirds of the city's force, were Thursday handed to a government advisory body.

The letter campaign is the biggest in the force's history and follows a long fight for better pay rates by associations representing rank and file officers in the former British colony.

Staff associations are calling for new pay scales that would add an average of 230 US dollars a month to the pay packets of the city's 27,000-strong police force.

Hong Kong - Hong Kong shares plunged more than 7 per cent Thursday as delight over the US presidential election result turned to gloom over signs of a deepening global recession.

The blue-chip Hang Seng Index lost 1,050.12 points, or 7.08 per cent, to close at 13,790.04. Turnover was 48.25 billion Hong Kong dollars (6.22 billion US dollars).

The losses came 24 hours after the index surged by more than 3 per cent Wednesday afternoon on news of Barack Obama's win.