HONG KONG -- John Lee, chief executive of China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), announced plans to expedite the development of new growth areas to reinforce Hong Kong's status as an international financial center, including the establishment of an international gold trading market.

Delivering his fourth policy address on Wednesday, Lee said that the HKSAR will support the Airport Authority Hong Kong (AAHK) and financial institutions to establish Hong Kong's gold storage facilities, with a target gold storage capacity of over 2,000 tonnes in three years, propelling Hong Kong into a regional gold reserve hub.

Lee emphasized the need to encourage gold traders to set up or expand refineries in Hong Kong, and to explore with the Chinese mainland the feasibility of processing supplied materials in the Chinese mainland to produce refined gold for exporting to Hong Kong for trading and delivery.

He also announced plans to establish a central clearing system for gold in Hong Kong to provide efficient and reliable clearing services for transactions of gold in compliance with international standards, and to invite the participation of the Shanghai Gold Exchange to prepare for mutual market access with the Chinese mainland in the future.

Lee also highlighted plans to offer a greater variety of gold investment vehicles by assisting issuers in issuing gold funds, and to support the development of new investment products such as tokenised gold, and pledged support for the setting up of a trade association for the gold industry, with a view to establishing an exchange platform with the HKSAR government and regulators, stepping up promotional efforts and attracting more clients from Belt and Road countries and regions, while strengthening talent training.

The chief executive noted that the International Board of the Shanghai Gold Exchange has set up its first offshore delivery vault in Hong Kong and launched new contracts for delivery in Hong Kong, adding that the HKSAR will continue to promote cooperation between the gold markets of the two cities.