What could break Hong Kong’s property market?

PLANES NO LONGERQR land in Kai Tak, Hong Kong’s old airport. But nostalgists can stroll along the new “sky garden”, an elevated walkway lined with frangipani, myrtle and acacia, that passes above the old runway. By scanning a code along the route, visitors can “augment reality” by superimposing an image of a landing plane on their selfies. The park is part of a redevelopment plan that will eventually yield a hospital, tax office and new homes for tens of thousands of people. On either side of the walkway, cranes, diggers and welders labour busily to augment the reality of Hong Kong’s cramped and pricey housing.They have their work cut out for them. Property in Hong Kong remains horribly expensive, despite two years of protests and pandemic. House prices in April were only 1.5% below their peak in 2019. In one tower block being built in Kai Tak, a flat of 889 square feet sold last month for over HK$30m ($3.9m).