Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX) has further heightened the competition to host a liquid China equity index futures contract by obtaining US regulatory approval to offer its product to the US market. The exchange gained "no-action" relief from Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) last week, allowing it to sell its FTSE/Xinhua China 25 Index and Hang Seng China Enterprises Index futures to US entities (see story, p2).
While HKEX has listed the two contracts since May 2005 and December 2003, respectively, the no-action status was expected to be a significant marketing boost for the Hong Kong exchange, which has been seeking to broaden its international appeal in recent months.
CFTC's decision, which came two years after the exchange originally applied for no-action relief for its HSCEI contract,...