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Global investors are looking past US-China spats to keep market reforms and growth potential in their sights, HKEX’s boss says

  • China attracted US$142 billion of foreign direct investments in the first 10 months this year, 23 per cent higher compared with a year ago
  • As China’s reforms continue to progress, international investors are becoming more closely integrated with the mainland market, says HKEX CEO Nicolas Aguzin

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Mainland Chinese companies listed on Hong Kong stock exchange account for 80 per cent of the bourse’s turnover. Photo: Sam Tsang

China remains on top of international investors’ agenda as they continue to pour billions of dollars into Chinese bonds and equities despite the pandemic and political tension between Washington and Beijing, according to the boss of Hong Kong’s bourse operator.

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This will further strengthen Hong Kong’s role as a connector between mainland China and the global markets, Nicolas Aguzin, chief executive of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX), said on Wednesday.

“We’re not seeing a decoupling at all. The facts actually point to exactly the opposite,” he said in a video message recorded for the third instalment of the China Conference organised by the South China Morning Post. “Hong Kong has a key role to play in connecting China and the world.”

China attracted US$142 billion of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the first 10 months of this year, 23 per cent more than a year earlier, making it the second largest FDI destination after the US.

Nicolas Aguzin, CEO of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing. Photo: Handout
Nicolas Aguzin, CEO of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing. Photo: Handout

International investors’ combined holdings of Chinese bonds and equities stood at 7.5 trillion yuan (US$1.18 trillion) at the end of September, 30 per cent higher year on year and tripling in the last four years, Aguzin said.

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