Chief Executive John Lee says the government can do its part to draw in big name stars, such as Taylor Swift and Beyoncé, to give the tourism, retail and catering sectors a shot in the arm. But he cautioned that convincing them to actually come could be a challenge. Anne Chan reports:

The chief executive also says he will lead a multi-pronged promotional campaign to inform the public about new national security legislation the government aims to put in place by the end of the year. Elvis Yu reports:

Lawmakers say they will do their part in explaining the Article 23 legislation. Some also said the administration should reassure the public that their freedoms would not be undermined by the new law. Wendy Wong reports:

The government is calling on people to be extra vigilant, saying a number of forged TV programme clips featuring the Chief Executive promoting an investment plan have been circulating on the internet. Authorities say the videos were created by artificial intelligence and reminded people to always verify the authenticity of such content. But how do you identify a deepfake video and is it even possible to do so? Francis Fong, Honorary President of the Hong Kong Information Technology Federation, told Natale Ching that while there was almost no way for the naked eye to tell what was real and what was not, people should be on the lookout for red flags:

The national security trial of former Apple Daily boss Jimmy Lai has heard that the tycoon directed the paper’s English edition to abandon its international coverage to focus on mainland China. He was also said to have vetoed a proposed addition of soft news over concerns the move would dilute his aim of arousing foreign concerns. Violet Wong reports:

The Court of Final Appeal has reinstated the conviction of activist Chow Hang-tung for inciting others to join an unauthorised assembly in 2021, marking June Fourth. Damon Pang reports:

Tourism experts from Polytechnic University say a platform they have launched to forecast visitor levels in Greater Bay Area cities will help officials cope with surges in arrivals. The platform anticipates short-term tourism demand by tapping big data, including keyword searches and reviews on social media. Long-term forecasts are based on official data. Professor Haiyan Song, the associate dean of the university’s tourism management school, spoke to Vanessa Cheng:

An environmental scientist says at the moment, Hong Kong recycles less than 10 percent of the 3000 tonnes of food waste generated daily. Jonathan Wong, director of the Hong Kong Organic Resource Centre at Baptist University, was commenting after the government said it would ramp up the number of smart recycling bins at public housing estates that collect food waste. Professor Wong says waste that ends up in a landfill can emit greenhouse gases as it decomposes. He says right now, Hong Kong has one facility, O·PARK1, that uses a process called anaerobic digestion to convert food waste into energy. But he told Samantha Butler that it had a capacity of around 200 tonnes a day:

The DAB has urged the government not to increase prices for public services, saying doing so would add burden on people who are already facing many challenges. Aaron Tam reports:

The Asian Financial Forum came to a close on Thursday, but participants are making use of the event's online deal-making sessions that will last throughout the weekend. Some mainland firms taking part in these sessions say they hope to expand to other Asian markets. One of the firms is Mesiontech, a Nanjing-based startup that develops chips for augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) glasses. The firm's product designer Blake Wei told Chloe Feng that they chose to join the forum because they saw Hong Kong as an ideal place to attract venture capital from around the world:

A Japanese man found guilty of carrying out an arson attack that killed 36 people at an anime studio in 2019 has been sentenced to death. Shinji Aoba, who is now 45, had said he committed the attack because he believed the studio stole his ideas, a claim the company denied. RTHK's Tokyo correspondent Julian Ryall, said the blaze that ripped through the Kyoto Animation studios four-and-a-half years ago was considered the worst case of mass murder in Japanese history. He spoke to Carol Musgrave:

People who want crisp new banknotes have been queuing at major banks since Thursday morning - an annual pre-Lunar New Year ritual. Banks say we are in for a festive beginning to the Year of the Dragon as there are more people this year who want to exchange their old notes for fresh ones. Hailey Yip reports: