Thought Leadership

Key Takeaways Net-zero portfolios (NZPs), managing over $130 trillion USD in assets, align financial performance with climate goals. These portfolios reward firms that actively reduce emissions while excluding those lagging behind, driving market incentives for decarbonization. The study introduces distance to exit (DTE), a forward-looking metric that measures a firm’s risk of exclusion from NZPs based on its carbon footprint and decarbonization efforts. Firms with higher DTEs—seen as safer from exclusion—tend to have higher valuations but lower expected returns, highlighting the market’s pricing of carbon-transition risks. DTE serves as both a risk measure and a catalyst for action, incentivizing firms to accelerate decarbonization to remain in NZPs, while enabling portfolios to achieve up to 95% reductions in carbon intensity without sacrificing sector diversification. Source Publication: 

Key Takeaways The agricultural export value of Brazil has quadrupled over the last two decades due to rising global demand. Brazil’s agricultural export boom drives deforestation: between 1997 and 2019, trade-induced agricultural expansion led to the loss of 3.6 million hectares of forest. Trade-induced deforestation causes severe health consequences: it results in over 700,000 premature deaths, primarily from cardio-respiratory diseases linked to pollution from deforestation in upwind areas. The economic cost of these deaths is estimated at $513 billion USD—about 18% of Brazil’s total agricultural export value during the same period. These findings highlight the negative health impacts of trade-induced deforestation and the resulting regional inequality, because mortality costs and economic benefits are not always shared by the same populations. Source Publication: 

Key Takeaways This study develops a theoretical framework to explore how carbon taxes and financial market tools (e.g., sustainability-linked loans and bonds) interact in reducing carbon emissions. Carbon taxes remain the most effective tool for achieving emission reductions and increasing welfare but are often politically constrained. Carbon-contingent financing provides an alternative incentive for standard agents to adopt green technologies, but its effectiveness depends on the financial resources of environmentally motivated agents who are funding the transition. Although carbon taxes and market-based solutions can coexist, carbon-contingent financing may undermine political support for taxes, potentially reducing their overall effectiveness in addressing emissions. The model’s predictions emphasize the need for a balanced climate strategy, whereby carbon taxes and financial market solutions complement each other by targeting different regions or sectors with distinct characteristics. Source Publication: 

While computer languages may sound alien to economics, I aim to showcase that good programming skills are conducive not limited to economic research, it can also open up endless career possibilities for you in the business world.

As a teacher, I will push myself to understand the expectations of local employers' and the market dynamics of Hong Kong.

As a science person, I am impressed by our students' strong business acumen. But as a teacher, other than teaching them how to use quantitative tools to make scientific claims, I also hope that I can encourage them to continue to stay inquisitive about the world and apply their classroom knowledge for the betterment of the society.

The global AI boom is still gaining momentum, and demand for computing hardware is growing rapidly. In this technological revolution, Hong Kong’s import and export sector has successfully seized the opportunities of the times, showing strong growth momentum.

Currently, the development and application of fintech and digital finance are no longer limited to non-bank fintech companies and large internet platforms. In fact, traditional commercial banks—which still firmly occupy a dominant position in the market—especially many large commercial banks, have been investing heavily in the development and application of cutting-edge financial technologies.

Recently, China’s online travel platform giant was fined a whopping 5.179 billion Chinese Yuan for allegedly abusing its dominant market position to profit. The fine has sparked widespread public attention.

Hong Kong’s petrol prices have ranked among the highest in the world in recent years. In March 2026, for example, the posted price of unleaded petrol at Hong Kong filling stations reached as high as US$4.06 per litre, about 42% higher than Malawi, which ranked second.

In the AI era, more and more companies are using AI to generate content and widely disseminating it online. An analysis by SEO research organization Graphite, which examined 65,000 English online articles published between 2020 and 2025, shows that the number of AI-generated articles first exceeded human-written articles in November 2024. By mid-2025, the proportion had risen to about 50%.

In 2026, Reddit’s data licensing agreement with Google, reportedly worth about US$60 million per year, is set to expire and come up for renewal. Together with a sister agreement signed with OpenAI around the same period, the two deals currently contribute roughly US$130 million in annualized data licensing revenue to Reddit.

Hong Kong’s petrol prices have ranked among the highest in the world in recent years. In March 2026, for example, the posted price of unleaded petrol at Hong Kong filling stations reached as high as US$4.06 per litre, about 42% higher than Malawi, which ranked second.

The global AI boom is still gaining momentum, and demand for computing hardware is growing rapidly. In this technological revolution, Hong Kong’s import and export sector has successfully seized the opportunities of the times, showing strong growth momentum.

Building massive projects such as Belt and Road Initiatives and the Northern Metropolis requires billions of dollars that can get tied up for decades. In a recent interview with China Daily, Dr. Yifei Zhang from HKU Business School shared that most Asian infrastructure financing faces illiquid project risks.