The financial markets in Hong Kong experienced high volatility in the first half of 2015. The year started with concerns about global economic growth and timing of a widely anticipated interest rate hike in the US. The Mainland’s ongoing liberalisation of its economy and markets, and the gradual increase in the trading through the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect programme spurred investor confidence in the early part of the second quarter. In June, the markets reacted rigorously to the uncertainty arising from the Greek debt crisis and the Mainland stock market adjustments.
Against this backdrop, the average daily turnover in the securities market and the average daily trading volume of futures and options in the derivatives market were $125.3 billion and 808,377 contracts for the first six months of 2015, an increase of 99 per cent and 54 per cent respectively as compared with the same period last year. The LME had a slight decrease in trading activity in the first half of the year. Average daily volume of metals contracts traded on the exchange fell 3 per cent from a year ago to 695,588 lots, due to weaker demand for industrial metals.
For the first six months of the year, the Group’s consolidated revenue and other income reached $6,853 million, and the LME’s contribution accounted for 19 per cent as a result of its commercialisation. The Group’s revenue and other income and the profit attributable to shareholders rose 48 per cent and 73 per cent respectively against the corresponding period last year. The Board declared an interim dividend of $3.08 per share, which is 90 per cent of the profit attributable to shareholders. To facilitate Shareholders’ reinvestment of their dividends into HKEx shares, the Board has decided to offer a 5 per cent discount on the subscription price for Shareholders who elect to receive the scrip alternative.
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