China to support renminbi stocks trading counter to increase access to Hong Kong equities

HONG KONG — China will support the inclusion of a renminbi counter under a stock connect scheme that would for the first time allow mainland investors to trade Hong Kong-listed stocks in yuan, the latest policy effort to strengthen ties between the two markets and boost the currency’s international status.

China Securities Regulatory Commission Vice Chairman Li Ming said on Tuesday mainland authorities were keen to expand the current range of offshore renminbi initiatives.

He told the Global Financial Leaders’ Investment Summit in Hong Kong the regulator supports mainland investors to trade on a renminbi stock transaction counter – launched in 2023 to investors in Hong Kong – via the mainland-Hong Kong stock connect program linking the two markets.

“We will support the futures market in Hong Kong enrich the management tools for offshore renminbi initiatives, and help Hong Kong to continuously foster its position as an international financial market,” Li said.

An expansion of the policy would allow investors greater access to companies such as e-commerce giant Alibaba, while deepening offshore yuan liquidity in the financial hub.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority’s summit, now in its fourth year, has brought together leading Chinese regulators, policy makers and global banking bosses.

Earlier, People’s Bank of China Deputy Governor Lu Lei said China’s central bank would “appropriately calibrate the strength and pace of policy support, ensure the implementation and execution of various monetary policy tools, and fully unleash the effects of these policies”.

The PBOC last cut interest rates and banks’ reserve requirement ratio in May, in an effort to soften the economic damage caused by a trade war with the United States.

Analysts remain divided on whether the PBOC will take further easing measures such as cutting rates by year-end.

Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng said on Tuesday he hopes Hong Kong will strengthen cooperation with mainland China’s economic and financial sectors which would allow the city to enhance its status as a global financial center.

“I hope Hong Kong can grasp the opportunities and proactively deepen its connection with the country’s development plans and enhance economic and financial cooperation with the mainland,” He said.

Hong Kong’s role as a global financial center was in question after COVID-19 restrictions closed its borders for almost three years and following the implementation of China-imposed national security laws in 2020.

The city’s capital markets have bounced back in 2025 after new share sales fell to the lowest point in almost a decade.

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee told the summit there have been 80 initial public offerings in the first 10 months of 2025, reflecting the city’s resilient capital markets.

Hong Kong has overtaken New York and Nasdaq to be the global top venue for new listings, excluding special purpose acquisition companies this year, Dealogic data showed, with a total of USD 26.8 billion raised so far, nearly tripling the listing value from the same period in 2024.

(Reporting by Selena Li, Kane Wu and Jiaxing Li in Hong Kong, and Kevin Yao in Beijing; Writing by Scott Murdoch; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Lincoln Feast.)