The Hong Kong Stock Exchange released its 2025 interim performance report on the 20th, with revenue and other income for the first half of the year reaching HKD 14.076 billion, a year-on-year increase of 33% and setting a new historical high for the first half of the year. According to the report, driven by favorable market sentiment, increased interest from investors in non US dollar assets, and increasingly active participation from international and mainland investors, the average daily trading volume of the securities market in the first half of 2025 was HKD 240.2 billion, an increase of 118% year-on-year. During the period, the Hong Kong ETF market continued to grow significantly, with an average daily transaction amount of HKD 33.8 billion, an increase of 184% compared to the same period last year. In terms of trading volume on the Shanghai Hong Kong Stock Connect, both northbound and southbound transactions have reached a semi annual high in recent years. The average daily transaction amount of the bond Connect to North increased by 3% year on year, also hitting a new high. In the first half of 2025, the fundraising amount of Hong Kong's new stock market will return to the top of global exchanges, and the fundraising amount of new stocks will be more than eight times that of the first half of 2024. As of June 30, 2025, the number of new stock listing applications under processing has increased to 207, more than double the 84 applications as of December 31, 2024. The Chairman of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Tang Ka shing, stated in the report that the Hong Kong Stock Exchange will perform strongly in 2025, achieving its best half year performance in history and making significant progress in strategic direction. He is full of confidence in the future and firmly believes that he can seize growth opportunities, further enhance the role of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange as an important bridge connecting the country and the world, and continue to build a prosperous future for Hong Kong and even the Asian financial markets. Chen Yiting, CEO of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange Group, stated that in the second half of the year, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange will actively promote multiple new measures to further enhance market competitiveness and attractiveness, including preparations to shorten the settlement cycle of the spot market, expand the paperless listing mechanism, implement new pricing regulations to optimize the initial public offering market, and launch the first phase of lowering the minimum upper and lower prices for securities trading. (New Society)