On Nov. 21, Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung announced that the launch of the Singapore-Hong Kong air travel bubble would be deferred for two weeks.

The move came after some discussion with Hong Kong Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Edward Yau, regarding the rise in the city's Covid-19 cases.

Ong was echoed by Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing who added on Monday, Nov. 23, that the decision for the deferral was a joint decision, according to CNA.

Chan: Decision made quickly

Chan added that the decision was made quickly, as it was on the basis of "clear parameters" which had been laid out between Singapore and Hong Kong, The Straits Times (ST) further reported.

Chan said:

"So when we look at the conditions, both sides (came) to a very fast agreement that when the conditions are changed, when the conditions have evolved, we will take the decisions accordingly."

Both cities also share their daily Covid-19 numbers with each other, he added.

And when a certain threshold is reached, a joint decision is taken.

Hong Kong records 73 new Covid-19 cases on Monday

According to CAAS, the travel bubble will be suspended for two weeks if the seven-day moving average of the daily number of unlinked Covid-19 cases is more than five in either Singapore or Hong Kong.

On Monday, Nov. 23, Hong Kong recorded its highest number of Covid-19 cases in three months, with 73 new cases recorded, according to The South China Morning Post (SCMP).

A total of 50 of these cases have since been linked to a "super-spreader" cluster involving 21 dance clubs, while eight of the cases are untraceable.

Meanwhile, the Hong Kong government has warned that the situation is deteriorating, according to Reuters:

"The local epidemic situation is worsening rapidly. Some of the confirmed cases are asymptomatic and this has indicated the existence of many silent transmission chains in the community."

Hong Kong had eased restrictions on areas such as dining outlets, theme parks and sports facilities in September, in the wake of a mass testing programme organised by the mainland government.

Thus far, the city has recorded 5,702 cases of Covid-19 and 108 deaths.

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Top collage via Dan Freeman via Unsplash and Chan Chun Sing Facebook