Hong Kong's Shipping Industry is Sinking

CX Daily: Hong Kong's Shipping Industry is Sinking
Dec 19, 2019 https://www.caixinglobal.com/2019-12-19/cx-daily-hong-kongs-shipping-ind...

Hong Kong shipping industry struggles in stormy waters

Shipping trade through Hong Kong dropped for a 22nd straight month in November and is likely to come under continued pressure due to fallout from the U.S.-China trade war and a longer-term migration of low-end manufacturing to Southeast Asia.

Hong Kong was one of the world’s busiest ports between 1987 and 2004, acting as a transshipment center that fed on China’s rapid economic rise during that time. But the port has sunk in the global rankings over the past decade as new, more sophisticated shipping centers have sprung up in China, especially in the nearby cities of Guangzhou and Shenzhen. A more recent challenge from regional rival Singapore is also taking a toll.

Container throughput at Hong Kong’s ports fell 7.4% year-on-year in November when 1.52 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) passed through the city’s ports, accelerating from October’s 4.1% year-on-year decline, according to data from the Hong Kong Maritime and Port Board. Throughput was down 6.2% year-on-year in the first 11 months of the year.

FINANCE & ECONOMICS

Economy /

China wants to avoid flood of infrastructure investment in 2020

China’s state economic planner said it would make “precise” and “effective” investments in transportation infrastructure next year, instead of unleashing a flood of investments.

The government will focus on filling in transportation infrastructure gaps next year and strive to achieve relevant goals laid out in the 13th five-year plan, which concludes next year, said Meng Wei, a spokeswoman for the National Development and Reform Commission. She was speaking at a briefing Tuesday.

Policy /

Exclusive: Banks set to win second delay to deadline for asset management overhaul

China’s financial authorities may extend the deadline for the country’s asset management industry to comply with a sweeping new regulatory framework for a second time after some institutions complained of difficulties in meeting the original target of December 2020.

Analysts at Zhongtai Securities, a Shandong province-based brokerage that offers asset and wealth management services, sent a message to clients on Tuesday saying that the deadline for compliance will be extended for three years to the end of 2023, we've learned. Several sources close to the central bank and the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission told us that the note was inaccurate and incorrect, but did not elaborate. Neither agency has commented publicly on the brokerage’s claim.

Fintech /

Former securities czar calls for tougher rules on ‘big tech’

The former head of China’s state securities regulator voiced concerns over the rapid expansion of technology behemoths into the financial services sector, calling for a better regulatory system to put fintech giants’ financial conditions, data management and business expansion under closer oversight.

The rise of large financial technology companies, or "Big Tech" enterprises, has benefited society by pushing traditional financial companies to advance technology and services and by promoting the growth of the industrial internet. But it also created problems and challenges that can’t be ignored, Xiao Gang, former chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, told a fintech industry forum Tuesday in Beijing.