Former property developer Alan Ho was down on his luck. His wealth had evaporated amid two years of economic storms. He needed a new business plan. He found it in the calligraphy-adorned office of Joseph Hau, master fortune teller.
For HK$9,000 (US$1,150), Hau gave Ho a preview of his next 20 years, including the news he would make a year's income in October. Now Ho is celebrating.
"Already this month, I've made almost HK$100,000," said Ho, who began a new career in tobacco after taking Hau's advice to quit the construction industry.
While Ho admits it's "hard to explain the logic behind all this," his is a very Hong Kong tale: Numerology, tarot readings and palmistry co-exist here with glass-walled towers, the Internet and mobile phones. What's new is that, as growth slumps and job cuts rise, folk are turning to fortune tellers for advice not just on love and marriage but on money too.
"People tend to do it more when there's a downturn," said Jun Ma, a senior economist at Deutsche Bank. "If you're happy with your money-making process, you wouldn't do that."
Though Ma, like many, doubts the fortune tellers' powers of foresight, to those who consult them they're confidants and comforters, just as priests or doctors may be to others.
Master Hau, who divined Ho's fortunes from the "DNA pattern" set by his time of birth, says his customers are "starting to ask a lot more economic questions." No long-bearded sage, the 43-year-old Hau studied business in a Kansas community college in the 1970s before returning to Hong Kong as a gold and stock trader. He became a professional fortune teller 10 years ago, now operating an office in the Tsim Sha Tsui hotel district.
Indeed, in Hong Kong superstition is as much part of life as moneymaking. Leading companies consult feng shui masters (geomancers) on the design of offices and apartment complexes.
Now, these deep-seated beliefs are being stirred by financial worries. The economy shrank 1.7 percent in the second quarter, while unemployment reached a 17-month high of 5.3 percent in September.
"When times were good, people would ask about changing jobs," said Chow Hon-ming, a fortuneteller who says he has between 50 and 60 regular customers and two staff.
"Now they don't have a choice. They might ask about whether the company will last."
Hau predicts fate will favor companies whose stock codes end with 1, 2, 6 or 7.
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