TNAG-1363-FCO40-1809-Hong-Kong-Hansard-reports-and-minutes-of-the-meetings-of-the-1985 — Page 181

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DRAFT SPEECH BY HON MARIA TAM, OBE,

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

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7.8.84

Securities (Amendment) Bill 1985

JP

sir,

The Hong Kong stock market is a major source of capital to local enterprises and has attracted significant overseas investors' interest. In 1981, it enjoyed a turnover of $105,986

million and ranked second in the Asian region just behind Japan. However, in the year 1982, 1983 and 1984, our turnover dropped to $46,229 million, $37,164 million and $48,984 million respectively and it is believed that since 1984 Singapore had caught up on us

in terms of capitalisation. 1982 to 1984 were difficult years in which the people of Hong Kong lived under the uncertainties that hung over our future. And it is to the credit of the Government, the Commissioner for Securities and many individual members of the securities industry that they continued in those years to formulate a series of legislation which has today come before this

Council and which will strengthen the quality control of the

dealers in securities as well as the monitoring of their

activities.

The Stock Exchanges Unification (Amendment) Bill 1985 proposed to expand the membership of the United Exchange to banks and deposit-taking companies, and the accountants and legal professionals, while the Securities (Amendment) Bill 1985 deals mainly with the measures of improving the quality control on the

dealers in securities. The provisions are briefly as follows:-

1.

Registration

(a)

Under Clause 18 it is proposed that

individual dealers must be of good

character and integrity with sufficient experience in dealing with securities,

or that he has passed a professional

examination approved by the

Commissioner for Securities.

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