For decades after 1949, Hong Kong—also known as the “Pearl of the Orient”—was the envy of mainland Chinese because of its prosperity and freedom. It was naturally the top destination for hundreds of thousands of mainlanders who tried to flee from famine or political chaos. Hong Kong also used to evoke feelings of poignancy among mainlanders, because it was under ...

Riyadh / Bloomberg A record 47,431 rooms and 124 hotel projects are currently under development in Saudi Arabia, according to a new report. The majority of projects are in the final construction and pre-opening stages with 52 projects and almost 20,000 rooms set to open to the public throughout the Kingdom this year, says the new report by TOPHOTELPROJECTS commissioned ...

London / Bloomberg Buy-to-let landlords are rushing to purchase U.K. homes ahead of an increase in the stamp-duty sales tax in April. The number of homes acquired by rental homeowners rose 71 percent in January from the same month a year earlier, according to data compiled by Countrywide Plc. the U.K.’s largest realtor. Landlords purchased 21 percent of all the ...