Hong Kong Remains The World's Most Open Market, Says US Think Tank
by Mary Swire, Tax-News.com, Hong Kong
30 April 2004

According to the US-based think tank the Milken Institute, Hong Kong occupies the top spot on its 2004 Capital Access Index.

The index, which measures the openness and efficiency of the world’s capital markets, revealed Hong Kong to be the most “mature” market in the world. The other countries occupying the list's top five were the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Singapore and Switzerland.

The United States, meanwhile dropped three places to sixth, and China improved by one place to 32nd.

The Index also recorded a growing gap between the ‘mature’ and ‘frontier’ markets, which the Institute claimed could put the global recovery in jeopardy.

Of the 85 countries surveyed by the Index, 33 of the 51 mature capital markets improved scores and attracted increased portfolio and direct investment flows. By contrast, only 15 of the 34 frontier markets – primarily low-income and developing countries - improved their position on the Index, whilst 19 fell.

“The relative improvement in mature markets and the deterioration of frontier markets creates greater geopolitical risk for the engines of growth in the U.S. and Asia,” stated Glenn Yago, director of the Institute’s capital markets research.

“Unless that gap is bridged, the current prospects for global recovery are threatened,” he warned.

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