HKSAR welcomes expansion of eligible stocks under Stock Connect program

HONG KONG, Dec. 19 (Xinhua) -- The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government on Monday welcomed securities regulators' approval for the mainland and Hong Kong exchanges to further expand the scope of eligible stocks under the Stock Connect program.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission and the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission issued a joint announcement on Monday on the in-principle approval.

The measure announced by the regulators signifies another milestone after the inclusion of exchange-traded funds in the mutual access program in July this year, further enhancing Hong Kong's role as the bridge connecting the mainland and overseas investors, said HKSAR Chief Executive John Lee.

Lee said the measure also offers more diverse investment choices to mainland and overseas investors, thereby injecting impetus into cross-boundary market liquidity.

Paul Chan, financial secretary of the HKSAR government, said the arrangement to expand mutual access is of strategic meaning to both the future development of Hong Kong's securities market and the higher-quality opening up of the mainland's securities market.

The Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect and the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect, which started operating in 2014 and 2016 respectively, give mainland and international investors direct access to each other's stock markets.

A separate announcement on the implementation details and commencement date will be made by the regulators.