White Collar | Expand the number of funds allowed to be included in the MRF and stronger mainland sales are sure to follow
Hong Kong Investment Funds Association total fund sales in Hong Kong during the first 11 months of 2016 fell 10 per cent to US$62.3 billion
Total investment fund sales last year ended up being the worst in three years, but the industry’s leading body is still confident strong evidence shows mainlanders are still interested in buying Hong Kong-based funds.
As long as the yuan continues depreciating, which is likely in 2017, mainlanders are likely to continue to buy funds, stocks and insurance policies here, according to the latest industry snapshot from the Hong Kong Investment Funds Association.
It added buying Hong Kong fund products, which are mainly US dollar denominated, will be an easy way to counter the continued falling value of the yuan, which dropped 7 per cent against the US dollar last year, the biggest annual loss since 2014.
The association’s figures show total fund sales in Hong Kong during the first 11 months of 2016 fell by 10 per cent to US$62.3 billion, the lowest since 2012 when full-year sales were just US$54.9 billion.
With December’s figures not yet available, total fund sales for 2016 look like being much lower than the US$72.2 billion in 2015, US$77.7 billion in 2014, and US$71.1 billion in 2013.
Experts say the MRF represents a massive opportunity, one which international asset management companies have been waiting a long for: the opportunity to distribute investment funds within the Hong Kong and mainland retail markets.
A number of market uncertainties had a major impact on sales of equity funds, which slipped by about 62 per cent to US$16.3 billion, on a year-on-year basis, during the first 11 months.