Hong Kong's financial industry has huge future opportunities: financial secretary

HONG KONG, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong has huge opportunities for future development as an international financial center, said Paul Chan, financial secretary of China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government.

Hong Kong has both "quality" and "quantity" advantages for being a pioneer and a developed market, Chan said in a blog post on Sunday.

Compared with other international financial centers, Hong Kong's biggest and core advantage is that it is the country's premier international financial center serving as the "super-connector" under the "one country, two systems," he said.

He said the institutional strength of the "one country, two systems" gives Hong Kong a unique position and advantage, as the Basic Law of the HKSAR protects the free flow of capital into and out of Hong Kong and the legal status of Hong Kong dollar.

A transparent, stable and efficient linked exchange rate system has acted as the backbone of Hong Kong's monetary and financial stability, he said.

Hong Kong's financial market is still outstanding in many aspects and has conspicuous comparative advantages, Chan said, adding that the current HKSAR government is adopting a more proactive development model, which will create new development advantages and space for Hong Kong.

China's economy is showing a positive trend, and the stable and prosperous development of the country is the most solid backing for Hong Kong's future development, Chan noted.

The global economy is seeing a shift in gravity from West to East, and Asia's share of the world economy has exceeded 40 percent, said Chan, noting that the future of Asia will be more important on the world economic map.