'Plan to allow typhoon trading has drawbacks'
The head of an asset management firm said on Monday that any decision to allow trading during severe weather conditions must take into account the effect on small brokers and their customers.  The local market is closed for the day as the No.8 typhoon signal remains in force, but officials are studying whether to keep the markets open in future – an issue raised in this year’s budget.  The Hong Kong Stock Exchange had spoken about the need to maintain the bourse’s competitiveness, noting that other places like Singapore do not lose trading days because of the weather. However, Alex Wong, a director from the Alex KY Wong Asset Management Company, said smaller brokers stand to lose out if the change is adopted.  He noted that while digital trading has become more common after the pandemic, some companies and their customers still go about their business the old-fashioned way.  "The smaller brokers may actually still rely more on phones and the traditional way, so they would be eliminated [if the changes are made]," Wong told RTHK. "Even if we're talking about a short period [of severe weather], if the period experiences very high volatility, then their customers would have a very bad time." Meanwhile, Terence Chong, an associate professor of economics from the Chinese University, said officials will need to address a number of issues to keep the Exchanges and Clearing, as well as banks open during severe weather.  He said the plan will involve legal and insurance-related changes.