HONG KONG : In 1997, the world watched as Britain returned Hong Kong to Chinese rule, with some pessimistic or wary about the outlook for the city and its role in the global financial system.
"I'm convinced that the overall prosperity of Hong Kong will remain as strong as before because Hong Kong retains its value to both sides," Li told Reuters, referring to China and the West. Critics of the government say political and civil liberties have been hugely curtailed, especially since the introduction of a national security law in 2020.
On the Hong Kong-Shenzhen stock connect channel, turnover stands at about 58 billion yuan, up from 2.7 billion yuan at its launch in 2016.Although uncertainty clouds the outlook for political and civil liberties under electoral changes and the sweeping national security law, other business executives say Hong Kong's standing as a financial hub will stay intact.
The city has contended for some of the world's hottest initial public offerings in recent years, including Alibaba, the New York-listed e-commerce titan, which journeyed to Hong Kong to raise $13 billion in a secondary listing in November 2019. "I believe the central government's intention toward Hong Kong is benign. They don’t want to mess up Hong Kong," Hu said.