Eight Belt and Road firms apply to list in Hong Kong, trade chief says

Eight more companies from countries involved in Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative have applied to list in Hong Kong, the city’s trade promotion chief has said.

Fedrick Ma Si-hang, chairman of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, also said on Monday that the city’s economy would benefit from improving China–US ties. The council has also raised its export forecast.

Speaking on the sidelines of the Global Youth Powerhouse Summit, Ma said interest in Hong Kong’s capital markets from Central Asia had surged after a high-level delegation led by Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu visited the region in June.

“During my trip to Kazakhstan, their sovereign fund, which holds controlling stakes in many local companies, said it was interested in leveraging Hong Kong, an international financial centre, and its capital market to raise funds,” he said, while not disclosing the names or natures of the firms.