Following are the remarks by the Secretary for Transport and Logistics, Ms Mable Chan, at a media session after attending the Low-altitude Economy Regulatory Sandbox – Launch Event today (March 20): Reporter: When will … read more
Hong Kong maintained third place globally, with the overall rating increasing by 11 points to 760, slightly closing the gap in rating with first place, in the Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI) 37 Report published today (March 20) by Z/Yen from the United Kingdom and the China Development Institute from Shenzhen. Hong Kong also continued to rank first in the Asia Pacific.
A Government spokesman said, “The report fully recognises Hong Kong’s leading status and strengths as an international financial centre. Hong Kong’s rankings in the areas of ‘human capital’, ‘infrastructure’, and ‘financial sector development’ rose to second in the world, while rankings in ‘business environment’ and ‘reputational and general’ rose to third globally.”
Hong Kong also ranked among the top in various financial industry sectors. Among these, Hong Kong ranked first globally in “investment management”, “insurance” and “finance”, and ranked third globally in “banking”. In addition, the report assessed the financial centres’ fintech offering, and Hong Kong’s ranking leapt further by five places to fourth in the world.
The spokesman added, “With the staunch support of our country, Hong Kong will continue to leverage the advantages under ‘one country, two systems’, actively integrate into national development, and deepen international exchanges and co-operation, with a view to fulfilling our roles as a ‘super connector’ and a ‘super value-adder’. Finance is an important tool to support the development of the real economy. A series of policy initiatives have been announced in the 2025-26 Budget, pressing ahead with the high-quality development of Hong Kong’s international financial market to create more new growth areas.
“On the stock market, various institutional reforms, including enhancing the timeframe for the listing application process and listing requirements for specialist technology companies, coupled with the Government’s active efforts to attract new capital from the Mainland and overseas and expand new markets, have injected new impetus into the Hong Kong market and improved its liquidity. We also endeavour to deepen financial mutual access between the Mainland and Hong Kong and have implemented a number of measures to enrich and support offshore Renminbi (RMB) business, such as enhancing the settlement arrangements of Bond Connect and launching offshore RMB bond repurchase business using Northbound Bond Connect bonds as collateral, further strengthening Hong Kong’s role in connecting the Mainland and international capital markets.
“On asset and wealth management business, the Government has implemented measures to continuously promote its development over the past year, including enhancements to the Cross-boundary Wealth Management Connect Scheme in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Exchange-traded Fund Connect, and the Mainland-Hong Kong Mutual Recognition of Funds arrangement. On green finance, we launched in December last year a roadmap on sustainability disclosure in Hong Kong, which provides a well-defined pathway for large publicly accountable entities to fully adopt the International Financial Reporting Standards – Sustainability Disclosure Standards (ISSB Standards) no later than 2028, leading Hong Kong to be among the first jurisdictions to align its local requirements with the ISSB Standards. On fintech, we will soon promulgate a second policy statement on the development of virtual assets to explore the integration of traditional finance and virtual assets. We will also continue to explore new growth areas, including promoting gold market development and creating a commodity trading ecosystem in Hong Kong.”
The GFCI Report has been released every March and September since 2007. In GFCI 37, 119 financial centres were assessed, and Hong Kong ranked third globally with an overall rating of 760. read more
Deputy Director of Environmental Protection Dr Vanessa Au led a delegation of the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) to participate in the International Water Conference, the 50th Anniversary Commemoration of the National Water Supply and Drainage Board of Sri Lanka and the 10th Anniversary of China-Sri Lanka Water Technology Cooperation and the World Water Day event in Sri Lanka. The delegation enagaged in exchanges with representatives from various regions with a view to jointly achieving the goal of high-quality green and sustainable development under the Belt and Road (B&R) initiative.
The Conference, organised by the National Water Supply and Drainage Board of Sri Lanka, took place in Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka, on March 19 and 20. It was aimed at fostering international co-operation and technical exchanges between Sri Lanka and the international community in advancing climate resilience and sustainable management of the water environment. Dr Au and the EPD delegation attended the Conference yesterday (March 19). The Conference was also attended by representatives including those from the Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Sri Lanka’s Central Environmental Authority (CEA), the Ministry of Urban Development, Construction and Housing, and the Department of National Community Water Supply, as well as research institutes and universities from the B&R countries and other regions.
Dr Au attended an exchange meeting with Sri Lanka’s CEA today (March 20), where she introduced Hong Kong’s management strategies for improving air quality and shared the city’s successful experiences in setting up an air quality monitoring network.
The EPD delegation will attend the 50th Anniversary Commemoration of the National Water Supply and Drainage Board of Sri Lanka and the 10th Anniversary of China-Sri Lanka Water Technology Cooperation and the World Water Day event tomorrow (March 21). On March 22, the delegation will visit Kandy to attend the International Water Conference on Climate Change and Environmental Pollution: Challenges and Solutions for Food Security and Public Health organised by the China-Sri Lanka Joint Research and Demonstration Centre for Water Technology. The delegation will also visit the University of Peradeniya in Sri Lanka to learn about its latest green technology developments and hold technical exchanges with local researchers.
The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) today (March 20) announced that the monthly gravidtrap index for Aedes albopictus mosquitoes in February dropped further, to 0.03 per cent from 0.2 per cent in January this year. … read more
The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) wishes to alert members of the public to a press release issued by Fubon Bank (Hong Kong) Limited relating to a fraudulent website and an internet banking login screen, which have been reported to the HKMA. A hyperlink to the press release is available on the HKMA website.
The HKMA wishes to remind the public that banks will not send SMS or emails with embedded hyperlinks which direct them to the banks’ websites to carry out transactions. They will not ask customers for sensitive personal information, such as login passwords or one-time password, by phone, email or SMS (including via embedded hyperlinks).
Anyone who has provided his or her personal information, or who has conducted any financial transactions, through or in response to the website or login screen concerned, should contact the bank using the contact information provided in the press release, and report the matter to the Police by contacting the Crime Wing Information Centre of the Hong Kong Police Force at 2860 5012. read more