TNAG-1765-FCO40-2519-Hong-Kong-stock-market-and-exchange-rate-1989 — Page 186

(c) at the Securities Commission and the

Commodities Trading

been

Commission, which had

set up as overlords of the industry,

there was a general absence of direction.

original intention that

The Government's

they

should

be

independent

and

authoritative, had not been carried out.

Rather than being high-powered watchdogs, they had been relegated in recent years to a passive and reactive role; and

(d) at the Office

of

Securities and

established within

service

Commodities

the Commissioner for

Trading

the Administration to

the

Commissions,

the

Commissioner's

repeated pleas

for

were

available

additional resources to cope with the

rapidly developing markets had often been

delayed or rejected by Government. But

the allocation of what little resources

reflected too much

emphasis on vetting papers rather than on

active surveillance and monitoring of

markets and brokers. Moreover, faced

recently with a determined and forceful

Stock Exchange leadership, and lacking sufficient support from Government, it had

lost the initiative.

Main recommendations

1.8.

We believe that Hong Kong should aim to be the primary capital market for the South East Asian region and to that end should encourage the development of new markets and the international element of existing ones by

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