DISNEY-HONG KONG THEME PARK TALKS TO LAST MANY MONTHS.Byline: Marcos Calo Medina Associated Press Associated Press: see news agency. Associated Press (AP) Cooperative news agency, the oldest and largest in the U.S. and long the largest in the world. Hong Kong Hong Kong (hŏng kŏng), Mandarin Xianggang, special administrative region of China, formerly a British crown colony (2005 est. pop. 6,899,000), land area 422 sq mi (1,092 sq km), adjacent to Guangdong prov. and The Walt Disney Noun 1. Walt Disney - United States film maker who pioneered animated cartoons and created such characters as Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck; founded Disneyland (1901-1966) Disney, Walter Elias Disney Co. said Thursday they will need four more months of talks to resolve economic issues before reaching a deal on a Disney theme park. ``We're not talking about dating any more - we're talking about money,'' Stephen Ip Stephen Ip GBS JP (Chinese: 葉澍堃, born 1955) is currently the Secretary for Economic Development and Labour in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. He was appointed to the position on July 1, 2002. , Hong Kong's secretary of economic services, told a news conference. Hong Kong officials declined to go into details of their negotiations with the entertainment company, citing a confidentiality clause. But Ip and Hong Kong tourism commissioner Mike Rowse said they were confident enough that the government will seek to rezone re·zone tr.v. re·zoned, re·zon·ing, re·zones To change the zoning classification of (a neighborhood or property, for example). re part of outlying Lantau Island Lantau Island, also Lantao, based on the old local name of Lantau Peak (Traditional Chinese: 爛頭; lit. Ragged Head), is the largest island in Hong Kong, located at the mouth of the Pearl River. as a tourism area with space for ``a major international theme park.'' Disney has been the talk of the town for months, boosting sentiment on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange The Hong Kong Stock Exchange (Traditional Chinese: 香港交易所, also 港交所; abbreviated as HKEX; HKSE: 0388 ) is the stock exchange of Hong Kong. and offering hopes that the project could help lift the territory out of recession. A Disney park would provide jobs - both as it is built and after it is open - and bring in more tourists, although some economists say the impact on Hong Kong's economy would not be enormous. Rowse disputed suggestions that a deal with Disney has been delayed, even though Hong Kong officials had originally sought to wrap up talks by the end of June. Disney, based in Burbank, had no comment. Recent Hong Kong media reports say Disney was demanding various concessions, including free land, free reclamation and low-interest loans on the project that would cost the territory an estimated $640 million. Rowse said that when Hong Kong's finance secretary, Donald Tsang, had formally announced the negotiations with Disney in March, he had indicated that the original deadline of Wednesday was the date to either reach a deal, give up or seek an extension of the talks. Investors cut Mouse's stock BURBANK - Shares of The Walt Disney Co. fell 6 percent Thursday after Morgan Stanley Dean Witter analyst Richard Bilotti downgraded the stock to ``neutral'' from ``strong buy'' due to what he thinks will be weakness in creative content, which includes films and video. Shares of the Burbank-based entertainment giant fell $1.8125 to $29. - Daily News CAPTION(S): Box BOX: Investors cut Mouse's stock (See text) |
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