Photo taken on Aug 20, 2019 shows the Golden Bauhinia Square in Hong Kong, China.Photo:Xinhua

Hong Kong's financial system remains resilient and stable and the city's linked exchange rate system (LERS) is in good shape, despite challenges caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) said. 

Hong Kong retains its institutional advantage as an international financial hub, underpinned by its effective, transparent and internationally aligned regulatory regime and abundant financial talent and products, read a posting on Monday on the WeChat public account of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Guangdong of the HKSAR government.  

The posting cited the recently released Global Financial Centres Index. The latest version of the index was launched Friday by Z/Yen Group, a British commercial think tank, in partnership with the China Development Institute. 

New York stayed on top of the rankings, while London retained second place. Shanghai unseated Tokyo to be in the third position. Hong Kong, for its part, took fifth place. 

Hong Kong is the first choice for international and Chinese businesses in pursuit of a listing and fundraising platform, with a raft of big new-economy firms opting for a primary or secondary listing in Hong Kong, said the WeChat posting, and the city is also the world's largest offshore yuan services center and the second-largest private fund management center in Asia.

In a filing on Sunday with the Hong Kong bourse, Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com announced it intends to spin off its healthcare unit, JD Health, by way of a separate listing on the main board of the Hong Kong stock exchange. 

In a fresh push to consolidate the city's role in international financial markets, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd (HKEX), the operator of the Hong Kong stock market, announced Monday the launch of new MSCI futures contracts and market microstructure enhancements.

"Our goal is to make Hong Kong Asia's derivatives hub," HKEX Head of Markets Wilfred Yiu said in a statement on Monday, adding that "customers around the world look to Hong Kong to meet their trading and investment needs."

The HKSAR will continue to take advantage of the unique advantage of its financial system under the "one country two systems" principle and the local authorities will capitalize on the vast opportunities provided by the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the Belt and Road Initiative to strengthen Hong Kong's clout in the global financial arena, according to the posting. 

Global Times