HKEX to roll out MSCI Asia ex Japan Index Futures on 11 June

• HKEX has received regulatory approval to launch MSCI Asia ex Japan Index Futures
• These are HKEX’s first regional stock index futures
• Underlying index includes shares of Mainland enterprises listed in the US as well as shares from Hong Kong and 10 other Asia markets

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX) is pleased to announce that it has received regulatory approval to launch MSCI Asia ex Japan (MSCI AxJ) Futures linked to the MSCI All Country (AC) Asia ex Japan Net Total Return (USD) Index.  The MSCI AxJ Futures will be HKEX’s first regional stock index futures and will be launched on Monday, 11 June 2018.

HKEX’s MSCI AxJ Futures will be Asia’s first exchange-traded futures linked to the index, a widely used benchmark that reflects the performance of Hong Kong and 10 other equity markets in the region along with Mainland enterprise shares listed in the US.

“Investors in Asia will be able to trade futures on an important regional benchmark during their business day after we launch our MSCI AxJ Futures,” said Li Gang, HKEX’s Co-head of Market Development.  “We have found that there is potential demand for the product from investors in Asia and we are focused on delivering this futures contract to meet their diverse needs.

“We have invested a lot of effort in understanding AxJ fund managers who need this product in Asia and are optimistic we can build a good base of market participants.”

HKEX currently offers Hang Seng Index (HSI), Hang Seng China Enterprises Index (HSCEI) and other stock index futures.  HSI and HSCEI futures are flagship equity index products for HKEX’s derivatives market, and jointly accounted for 42 per cent of the market’s contract volume in the first four months of this year.

Key features of the new futures are shown in the table in the appendix.

Margin rates will be announced before the launch date.

Additional MSCI AxJ Futures information is available in a circular on the HKEX website, and there are further details of the MSCI AxJ Index in a two page factsheet and other information on the MSCI website.

Appendix

Key Features of HKEX’s MSCI AxJ Futures Contract

 

Underlying Index	MSCI All Country Asia ex Japan Net Total Return Index
Trading Currency	US dollar
Contract Multiplier	US$100 per index point
Minimum Fluctuation	0.01 index point (or US$1)
Contract Months	Nearest five calendar quarterly months
Trading Hours	8:30 am – 4:30 pm (Day Session); 5:15 pm – 1:00 am (After-hours Trading Session)
Last Trading Day	The third Friday of the month; if it falls on a Hong Kong public holiday, the Last Trading Day will be the preceding Business Day which is also a business day in Hong Kong
Final Settlement Price	Official closing value of the Underlying Index on the third Friday

 

Ends