Short selling of the 23 H shares in the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index is likely to be allowed by the end of the month, Stock Exchange of Hong Kong executive director Paul Phenix says.
The exchange also wants to add stocks with derivative warrants and the biggest companies in terms of market capitalisation to the short-trading list.
Mr Phenix said the exchange would like to make the changes by January 31 if approval was received from the Securities and Futures Commission.
The exchange enlarged the list of stocks which could be sold short from 17 to 133 last March.
Mr Phenix said the planned expansion of the list followed a favourable response from the market to last year's move.
'The exchange would like to see the investors use short selling as a hedging tool,' he said.
He said brokers and investors wanted short selling in stocks with derivative warrants so they could be used to hedge their positions.