Following a visit to Serbia, President Xi Jinping has arrived in Budapest, on the last leg of his European tour aimed at strengthening already flourishing ties between Beijing and its closest EU ally. Xi's three-day visit to Hungary marks 75 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries. He is expected to attend a state dinner with the Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. Jacqueline Guico reports:

Professionals who came to Hong Kong through a new government admission scheme have created billions of dollars in economic output. That is what authorities have said on the second day of the Global Talent Summit. Natale Ching reports:

Two government investment promotion bodies say they have attracted 45 companies in the life sciences and health technology sector to set up shop or expand their businesses since the end of 2022. InvestHK and the Office for Attracting Strategic Enterprises (OASES), say the companies have invested nearly HK$7 billion in the city and created some 3,200 jobs here since the end of 2022. Anne Chan reports:

The Office for Attracting Strategic Enterprises says mainland companies are choosing Hong Kong as a 'natural strategic location' from which to expand into the global market, while overseas companies come here because of the SAR's unique East meets West ecosystem. Maggie Lo, from the office, told Anne Chan that they were actively appealing to overseas companies through various trade missions:

The MTR Corporation will close a major stretch of the Kwun Tong Line for a rare full-day maintenance operation this summer. As Hailey Yip reports, no services will operate between Prince Edward and Ho Man Tin on July 28:

A former MTR engineer says infrastructure on the Kwun Tong line - which was built in the 1980s - is approaching the final stage of its design life, hence the urgency to conduct a full-day of maintenance. Lawmaker Gary Zhang says the unprecedented works will involve replacing cable hangers in the tunnel structure and cannot be completed during overnight non-traffic hours. Zhang told Samantha Butler that similar work on other ageing sections would most likely be needed in the coming two years:

The Police Force says it will integrate around 300 officers from the Railway District into the five land regions from the middle of this month, in a bid to improve operation efficiency and anti-terrorism efforts. After a one-month trial period, officers from the land regions will take over the duties of railway police, including daily patrols and response to railway accidents. And the railway officers will be overseen by the police headquarters, instead of the Kowloon East regional headquarters. Stephen Yu, a district commander of Railway District, spoke to Kelly Yu:

The government will ask internet service providers to remove the 2019 protest song "Glory to Hong Kong", after the Court of Appeal granted a temporary injunction order banning the song. Kelly Yu reports:

A man who bit off part of a former district councillor's ear has had his sentence reduced by six months on appeal. As Vanessa Cheng reports, the councillor was one of four people attacked outside a shopping mall in Taikoo Shing five years ago.

A lawmaker and a patients' rights advocate say a plan to ease queuing at public dental clinics will not solve the problem. As Elvis Yu reports, they pointed to the shortage of dentists as the root cause:

The government says it will consider asking suppliers of non-plastic tableware to make voluntary declarations on the quality and safety of their products. It comes amid concern about the presence of cancer-causing chemicals in some products after single-use plastic utensils were banned last month. Damon Pang reports:

A recruitment firm says employers should take note of government-related firms in strengthening overtime rules to stay competitive, as a poor work-life balance could push potential employees away. Leslie Tang, head of client solutions at Randstad Hong Kong, was commenting after a lawmaker raised the issue of staff doing invisible overtime, such as attending online meetings or replying to emails and messages after office hours. He says a 2023 study by the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions showed half of respondents worked more than 45 hours a week, with some logging more than 70 hours. He told Ben Tse about the difficulty of accurately measuring invisible overtime:

Finance minister Paul Chan has thanked lawmakers for their support in passing his budget bill. He said the administration would do its best to quickly implement relevant measures, as Damon Pang reports:

China says it is against the US withdrawing export licences to telecommunications equipment maker Huawei. Beijing vowed to take all necessary measures to firmly safeguard the legitimate rights and interest of Chinese firms. Chloe Feng reports:

North Korea's former propaganda master, Kim Ki Nam, has died at the age of 94, according to state media, KCNA. He was the man behind the personality cult surrounding the ruling Kim dynasty. He was regarded as personal friends with Kim Jong Il, the father of current leader Kim Jong Un - who attended his funeral on Wednesday. RTHK's correspondent in Seoul, Frank Smith, told Annemarie Evans how Kim rose to prominence:

Scientists are now starting to find the first building blocks of whale language. In a study published in the journal Nature Communications, researchers analysed more than 8,700 snippets of sperm whale clicks, and say they found four basic components that may make up a phonetic alphabet. Tony Sabine reports:

What does a hidden speakeasy bar look like in the context of an art fair? How does a Japanese artist make Hong Kong food scenes come alive in watercolour? And what happens when two musical legends, Philip Glass and Leonard Cohen, create work together? Ben Tse and Vanessa Cheng find out in this week's Broad Strokes podcast: