{"text":[[{"start":8.6,"text":"China will nearly double the amount of bonds its investors can buy in Hong Kong and allocate more of its foreign reserves to the territory, in a bid to boost international use of the renminbi and widen mainland access to offshore investment."}],[{"start":22,"text":"The Bond Connect scheme, which allows mainland Chinese investors to buy offshore bonds in Hong Kong, will increase its annual quota to Rmb800bn ($118bn) from Rmb500bn, said Pan Gongsheng, China’s central bank governor, on Tuesday."}],[{"start":39.9,"text":"The programme will also expand its scope to include Hong Kong dollar-denominated bonds and those issued in Macau."}],[{"start":47.35,"text":"The move is expected to help satisfy mainland demand for higher-yielding products, as the onshore 10-year Chinese government bond plumbs lows of 1.7 per cent. China’s strict capital controls make the Bond Connect scheme one of the few ways for mainland traders to access offshore investments."}],[{"start":67.1,"text":"“There is clearly demand for the ability to use the quotas to diversify the investments of onshore institutional investors,” said Eddie Yue, chief executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority."}],[{"start":78.3,"text":"The announcement is part of a campaign by the Hong Kong and mainland authorities to increase use of the renminbi in trade and investment and reduce reliance on the US dollar."}],[{"start":90.1,"text":"Hong Kong will receive more allocation of foreign reserves from the People’s Bank of China, “which will give vitality to Hong Kong’s development”, Pan said at the FIC & Bond Connect Summit on Tuesday."}],[{"start":101.39999999999999,"text":"He added that usage of the renminbi had grown from settlement to financing and use as a reserve currency."}],[{"start":108.74999999999999,"text":"Historically low yields in mainland China have left institutional investors in pressing need of higher-yielding products to cover their liabilities. Chinese capital has flooded into areas such as high-dividend bank stocks in Hong Kong."}],[{"start":122.74999999999999,"text":"Last year, Beijing significantly broadened access to Bond Connect, opening the scheme to insurers and other non-bank financial institutions for the first time."}],[{"start":132,"text":"“Overall it’s positive news for the bond market,” said Xixi Sun, China bond syndicate head at Citi. “It should support the offshore renminbi both in terms of primary issuance as well as the secondary market.”"}],[{"start":145.25,"text":"Authorities on Tuesday also unveiled a Hong Kong stock exchange-backed trading platform for offshore renminbi bonds and more than doubled an HKMA renminbi lending facility for Hong Kong banks to Rmb500bn."}],[{"start":160,"text":"This came alongside the start of a trial for a central clearing system for gold and renminbi-denominated gold futures."}],[{"start":167.65,"text":"The system, run in partnership with the Shanghai Gold Exchange, is part of Hong Kong’s long-running effort to become a gold trading hub."}],[{"start":175.5,"text":"“With Asia accounting for over 60 per cent of global bullion demand in 2025, Hong Kong is well placed to serve as the region’s gold clearing hub and a gateway for global investors,” said David Liao, co-chief executive for Asia and the Middle East at HSBC."}],[{"start":193.8,"text":"This article has been amended since publication to correct the denomination of bonds in the expanded scheme"}],[{"start":206.65000000000003,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1783420362_5339.mp3"}