HONG KONG – Over 74,000 runners from home and abroad will join the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon 2025 this Sunday.

The first groups of the half-marathon and full-marathon categories will start at 5:30 am and 6 am, respectively, from Nathan Road in Tsim Sha Tsui, while the 10-kilometer race will begin at 5:30 am from the Island Eastern Corridor.

The Transport Department will implement temporary road closures in phases starting on Saturday night and will reopen them in phases according to the progress of the race.

A marathon-themed expo runs from Wednesday until Saturday at the Kai Tak Sports Park, featuring over 40 booths and a host of game activities for visitors.

The event is expected to attract over 120,000 visitors over four days, making it the single most participated public event at the KTSP since its opening.

Promoting HK brands

Hong Kong will hold a brand awards presentation ceremony on Feb 11 in a move to recognize outstanding local brands and promote Hong Kong products and services.

Fifteen enterprises from various industries including manufacturing, catering, medicine, etc and 14 service brands including those from the education, environmental protection, and payment technology sectors will receive awards during the event jointly organized by the Chinese Manufacturers’ Association of Hong Kong and Hong Kong Brand Development Council at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.

It comes as market players in Hong Kong are moving to enhance their brand competitiveness and popularity globally by embracing digital technology, forging partnerships, and promoting publicity.

Stepping up recruitment

As migrant workers gradually return to Shenzhen after the Chinese New Year holiday, the southern Chinese metropolis will hold a number of recruitment events through March to fulfill its job demand.

Human Resources and Social Security Bureau of Shenzhen Municipality said that 364 nonprofit recruitment activities are being held from January to March, with 11,000 enterprises offering more than 200,000 job positions.

A range of services are provided by the local government for enterprises to help them with hiring, including conducting on-site visits, offering tailored services like return-to-work arrangements, recruitment support, and policy guidance. Special commissioners are also dispatched to enterprises in need, which will help refine job demands and share them on public platforms for wider outreach.