Southbound stock quota fully utilized

Investors from the Chinese mainland for the first time on Wednesday used the entire 10.5 billion yuan ($1.69 billion) daily investment quota for buying Hong Kong stocks under the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect program.

The buying boosted the Hang Seng Index, which soared more than 3.7 percent. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index of Hong Kong-listed mainland companies was up 5.7 percent for the day.

The milestone follows signs of rising interest in Hong Kong stocks from mainland investors, after months in which the southbound leg of the stock program was largely unused.