Hong Kong maintains 3rd place in global financial centers index

HONG KONG: Hong Kong maintained third place globally and continued to hold the top position in the Asia-Pacific region in a financial centres index published on Wednesday by British and Chinese think tanks.

The Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI) 40 report, released by British think tank Z/Yen Group and the China Development Institute in Shenzhen, assessed a total of 117 financial centres around the world. According to the report, Hong Kong's overall rating was 756.

Hong Kong continued to rank first globally in fintech offerings. Hong Kong also ranked highly in the five areas of competitiveness. Among them, the city's ranking in "financial sector development" rose to first place worldwide. While remaining second in rank for the area of "human capital", Hong Kong's ranking in "business environment" and "infrastructure" also rose to second place.

In the assessment by practitioners across various financial industry sectors, Hong Kong continued to achieve outstanding performance. Hong Kong's ranking in the "investment management" sector rose to first place worldwide, and it continued to top the global ranking in the "insurance" and "finance" sectors.

A spokesperson for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government said that Hong Kong will adhere to the principle of seeking growth through stability and, in turn, reinforcing stability through growth to expand its existing financial advantages. The city will also take forward "Finance+" to amplify the advantages and radiating capability of finance.

As a global offshore renminbi (RMB) business hub, Hong Kong will continue to leverage its unique strengths and proactively align with national development strategies, promoting more measures to better use offshore RMB, the spokesperson said.

The GFCI report has been published in March and September each year since 2007.

By RSS/Xinhua