Kam Sing International was fined HK$100,000 and its membership of the Travel Industry Council (TIC) suspended for one month over the incident when the tour guide was reported for abandoning 12 members of a Chinese group at a ferry pier after they refused to buy souvenirs at a shop he had recommended.

The guide was suspended for three months.
The decision is seen as an attempt to shore up Hong Kong’s image, which has reportedly been hard-hit by mounting complaints, particularly from Mainland tourists, about unscrupulous retail shop-owners. It also follows a recent spate of negative reports about the operations of two major tourist attractions – Hong Kong Disneyland and the newly-opened Ngong Ping 360 cable car ride on Lantau island.

According to a Hong Kong Tourism Board spokesperson, the number of Mainland tour groups visiting the territory has plummeted 40 per cent since the incident.