Hong Kong will stop halting stock markets during typhoons and severe weather
Istanbul, June 7 (Hibya) - Hong Kong’s $4.2 trillion market won’t stop trading in the event of typhoons and heavy rainstorms. The Hong Kong exchange typically halts trading when a typhoon signal or a so-called “black rainstorm warning” is issued.
The previous CEO of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, Nicolas Aguzin, told CNBC in 2022 that the bourse was reviewing that protocol.
According to the Hong Kong observatory, there were 11 tropical cyclones reaching typhoon intensity or above in 2023 — that’s less than the 60-year average of about 15 from 1961 to 2020.
The Hong Kong exchange is expected to announce the proposed framework in the next few weeks, according to the people who spoke to Bloomberg. They said the plan is still being finalized and is subject to last minute changes.
Currently, the Hong Kong exchange cancels the morning session if extreme weather conditions persist beyond 9 a.m. Hong Kong time and before 11 a.m. A full day’s trading will be cancelled if extreme conditions extend beyond 12 p.m.
The typhoon season in the Pacific usually begins with less severe storms in April and does not end until November, with the most severe typhoons usually occurring in August and September, according to climatological database World Info.