However the world goes on, so here's an update from my corner of it. I was hoping the economic crisis would make an impact on the smog that rolls across the China border, but no such luck. The smog is BACK this week, as foul and putrid as ever. Which raises an interesting question for the Hong Kong government - if all the factories in Guangdong are closing , where's the smog coming from? Could it be - gasp - Hong Kong? The government's smog abatement strategy continues to be hoping the wind will blow it away. So as the Chinese economy continues to deflated we may see some more pressure on the HK govt to Do Something.

And the economy, by the way, really is cactus. Property prices are dropping like smog-confused pigeons, who might also have bird flu, which has reappeared in the territory. Planeloads of broken expatriate bankers are leaving, someone is throwing bottles of acid at crowds of shoppers - and on and on it goes. Which is why we're taking a short break in the land of Oz. Merry Christmas!