Hong Kong’s neon lights are still on, but COVID-19 has turned off a lot of the city’s usual energy. Instead, now there is an unusual sense of limbo. Busy shopping streets and office districts are much emptier than ever before. Fears of the new virus in mainland China hit Hong Kong in early 2020, but it’s only now that the city has hit a real low, with endless businesses closed either by government order or because of staff illness or lack of business. Public transport has been scaled back, with buses standing idle in parking lots, and subways running fewer trains. Francis Lun has worked in investment management in Hong Kong for decades and is known locally as a commentator on commerce. He says current business sentiment is down. “Everything was really starting to look up by the end of 2021, because we were looking forward to opening up with …