Hong Kong Chief Least Popular as Protests Rise: Chart of the Day

Hong Kong’s Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, who took office on July 1, has the lowest public-support rating for a new leader since the handover to China in 1997, amid residents’ concerns about new patriotism classes in schools and a surge of visitors from the mainland.

The CHART OF THE DAY tracks monthly support figures for Leung with his predecessors Donald Tsang and Tung Chee-hwa, according to the University of Hong Kong’s Public Opinion Programme. Leung’s rating fell to 50.3 out of 100 last month, based on surveys of about 1,000 residents. The lower panel shows the Centaline Property Agency Ltd.’s home-price gauge is at a record high, while the university’s quarterly index of public confidence in the city’s future is at the lowest since 2003.