Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu speaks to the media ahead of an Executive Council meeting on May 23, 2023. (PHOTO / HKSAR GOVERNMENT)

Through multiple channels — including launching the renminbi-Hong Kong dollar dual counter model for stock trading, and providing diverse risk-management products for investors — Hong Kong will further strengthen its financial connectivity with the Chinese mainland, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said on Friday.

Ever since the official launches of the Southbound Trading under the Bond Connect and the Cross-boundary Wealth Management Connect Scheme in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in 2021, the cooperation between the financial market of the special administrative region and that of the mainland has increased, Lee said. Hong Kong’s role in building bridges between financial industries both at home and abroad as an international hub has been consolidated as well, he added.

The SAR government will continue to facilitate the trading of RMB securities in Hong Kong, and support the issuance of offshore RMB bonds

Delivering his speech via video at the second and final day of the Caixin Summer Submit 2023, Lee said that Hong Kong, seizing the opportunities of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25), the Outline Development Plan for the Greater Bay Area, and the Belt and Road Initiative, will spare no effort to integrate into nation’s development.

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Under the principle of “one country, two systems”, Hong Kong enjoys the distinct advantages of having strong support of the mainland while being well-connected globally, Lee said. Hong Kong now has withstood the test of the COVID-19 pandemic, and been back to a new track of prosperity, he said.

Sailing into a new phase of opening, the special administrative region will give full play to its unique strengths to fuel the nation’s high-quality growth while capturing new opportunities for Hong Kong, Lee added.

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Also speaking at the forum was Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po, who said, “In the new development stage, Hong Kong is expected to be a more efficient junction of domestic and international economic cycles.”

Chan prioritizes Hong Kong’s role in promoting renminbi internationalization, saying that the SAR must be a staunch supporter of trade and investment liberalization and facilitation via ways such as joining the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership and signing more free trade agreements with countries in the Middle East and other emerging economies.

The SAR government will continue to facilitate the trading of RMB securities in Hong Kong, and support the issuance of offshore RMB bonds, which is conducive to the further opening-up of the mainland’s financial market, and will help rejuvenate Hong Kong’s capital market.

Contact the writer at irisli@chinadailyhk.com