More than 100 restaurants close in a week under Covid outbreak

Over 100 restaurants have closed down as they failed to maintain businesses under the plight of the Covid-19 outbreak, head of a restaurant industry association said.

Simon Wong Ka-wo, the president of the Federation of Restaurants and Related Trades, said the government's relief fund to restaurant businesses up to HK$ 200,000 would help.

The subsidy came with an HK $25 billion package of measures by the government yesterday, which will also help retailers and tourist businesses in coping with the outbreak.

Speaking on a radio program this morning, Wong cited that more than 100 restaurant businesses have terminated operating in the past week, and many workers of the sector were forced to have no-pay leaves.

“More than 100 restaurants are closing down or terminating their operation within last week, which would affect the unemployment rate and the operation of the entire industry,” Wong said.

He added that 80 to 90 percent of Lunar New Year's restaurant bookings were canceled due to the virus outbreak, which has infected 56 people in Hong Kong so far.

Wong welcomes the government's measures, saying that subsidies would help small businesses to cope with operating funds problems.