HK bourse seeks mainland link quota expansion

Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing Ltd, the world's biggest bourse operator by market value, expects the trading limits for the equity link with the Chinese mainland will be increased.

The exchange had record trading turnover for two days this week as mainland investors used up their daily quota for buying Hong Kong stocks through the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect program. They bought 10.5 billion yuan ($1.7 billion) of shares on Wednesday and Thursday.

"There will definitely be an expansion," HKEx's Chief Executive Officer Charles Li said on Friday in Hong Kong. "The expansion won't simply be 20 percent to 30 percent. If there is an expansion, it must be of a certain magnitude of the quota," he said.