股市聯通機制須證明自身價值

The Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect, which provides offshore investors with direct access to the Shanghai stock exchange, has attracted fervent support from many global asset management companies that are gearing up to take advantage of it. But Asia is witnessing a flurry of such trading links, many of which are not likely to win the same interest.

“滬港通”爲海外投資者提供了一條直接進入上海股市的渠道，得到了很多準備利用這一機會的全球資產管理公司的熱情支持。但亞洲正出現一連串此類交易聯通機制，其中很多不太可能引起同等的興趣。

Launched in November last year, the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect should be followed before the end of 2015 by a similar link between Hong Kong and Shenzhen, China’s second largest stock exchange, which will provide foreign investors with access to many of China’s small and medium-sized enterprises and technology stocks. A future trading exchange to allow foreign access to China’s onshore bond market has also been touted.

“滬港通”於去年11月開通，在2015年年底之前，“深港通”也將啓動，爲境外投資者提供一個投資中國衆多中小企業和科技股的渠道。深圳證交所是中國第二大股票交易所。還有人在談論未來設立一個交易機制，讓境外投資者進入中國國內債券市場。

Other Asian exchanges are following suit. The Singapore and Taiwan exchanges are working on a similar programme to be launched in July. The Taiwan stock exchange says it is discussing a similar move with Japan.

其他亞洲交易所也在跟進。新加坡和臺灣交易所正致力於類似的聯通計劃，將於7月推出。臺灣證交所表示，正與日本討論類似的舉措。

But asset managers have shown little interest in utilising many of the new exchange trading links, says Yoon Ng, Asia research director at asset management researchers Cerulli Associates, other than those that provide access to China’s controlled equities markets. Investment quotas previously restricted these.

但資產管理研究機構Cerulli Associates的亞洲研究總監吳尹(Yoon Ng)表示，除了那些爲中國受到限制的股市打開門戶的機制外，資產管理公司沒什麼興趣利用很多新的交易聯通機制。此前投資額度限制了對中國股市的投資。

The creation of exchange link-ups outside China has been driven more by political will than investor demand, says Ms Ng. They would need to offer asset managers or institutional investors different benefits, either in transaction cost savings or operational efficiencies, she adds.

吳女士表示，中國以外交易聯通機制的出現，在更大程度上是由政治意願（而非投資者需求）推動的。她補充稱，它們需要爲資產管理公司或機構投資者帶來不一樣的好處，要麼是交易成本節省，要麼是運營效率。

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ trading link, set up in 2012, eases investor access across stock exchanges in six southeast Asian markets, yet has failed to attract significant investor interest. Trading volumes have not been great and asset managers have not switched from the original brokerage relationships they had in individual markets, says Justin Ong, Asia-Pacific asset management leader at PwC Singapore. He foresees a similar fate for the link-up between Singapore and Taiwan.

2012年推出的東盟(Asean)交易聯通機制，爲投資者進入6個東南亞市場的股市提供了便利，但未能吸引投資者的重大興趣。普華永道新加坡(PwC Singapore)的亞太資產管理負責人Justin Ong表示，交易量一直不是很大，資產管理公司也沒有改變它們在各個市場的券商關係。他預測，新加坡與臺灣股市的聯通機制也將遭遇類似的命運。

Any new stock connect link with China’s equities markets, by contrast, is most likely to be met with interest from many global investment managers. The Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect will offer fund managers an additional universe of some 2,600 listed securities. Mr Ong says Taiwan exchanges are eventually expected to be added to Hong Kong’s two stock link-ups with China to establish greater China stock connect between three markets. “There is no doubt that the China, Hong Kong, Taiwan links are probably where the main trading volumes will be for the next five years,” he adds.

相比之下，與中國股市聯通的新機制最有可能吸引很多全球投資管理公司的興趣。“深港通”將爲基金管理公司提供另外大約2600只上市股票。Justin Ong表示，預計臺灣交易所最終將加入香港與中國內地的兩個股市交易聯通機制，在兩岸三地之間建立一個股市聯通機制。他補充稱：“毫無疑問，中國內地、香港、臺灣之間的聯通機制很可能是未來5年交易量的主要來源。”

It may not be long before China links its exchanges with stock markets outside Asia. Charles Li, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing chief executive, floated the idea of linking China’s bourses directly with those in the US and Europe late last year. Eugenie Shen, asset management head at Asia Securities Industry & Financial Markets Association, envisages that many investment managers with a single base in New York or London would look to benefit from a direct trading link to China’s equities markets.

中國股市與亞洲以外股市的聯通可能不需要等太久。去年末，香港交易所(HKEx)首席執行官李小加(Charles Li)提出了將中國股市與美歐股市直接聯通的想法。亞洲證券業與金融市場協會(ASIFMA)資產管理業務主管Eugenie Shen預計，很多在紐約或倫敦擁有單一總部的投資管理公司將希望受益於當地同中國股市的直接聯通機制。

Ms Shen identifies operational problems stemming from the fact that China’s market would be closed during the daytime in New York and, for the most part, London, too. Global fund houses that have infrastructure and investment professionals in all leading financial locations would not find this a setback but may not necessarily benefit either.

Eugenie Shen認爲，運營問題在於這樣的事實：在紐約日間（以及倫敦日間的很長時間內），中國股市休市。在所有領先金融中心擁有基礎設施和投資專業人士的全球基金公司，不會把這視爲一種挫折，但可能也未必從中受益。

Ms Ng believes that more dialogue between exchanges will be positive. They will foster co-operation and operational conformity across diverse markets, she adds.

Cerulli Associates的吳尹認爲，交易所之間的更多對話將起到積極作用。她補充稱，這些對話將促進不同市場之間的合作和運行接軌。