Soaring HKD Hit Strong-side Convertibility Undertaking

Recently, the Hong Kong dollar's strong momentum has drawn special attention from the market. The USD/HKD has hit the strong-side convertibility undertaking of 7.75 several times and hovers around this level, which led to the Hong Kong Monetary Authority's intervention on several occasions.

Views attributed this to the fact that mainland China and Hong Kong, being the first to effectively contain the virus amid global pandemic, may become "safe havens"that continue to attract international capital flow. But the most convincing argument is the situation of interest rate market. Previously, as the Hong Kong dollar interest rate was significantly lower than the US dollar, traders conducted carry trade by funding US dollar-denominated assets with Hong Kong dollar. But in facing narrowing spreads and asset sell-off, carry traders will be forced to close their positions and in order to do so, they need to buy Hong Kong dollars in the spot market. It's expected that HKMA will continue to implement moderate intervention to stabilize the financial market.

Hong Kong’s linked exchange rate system requires the Hong Kong dollar to be pegged to the US dollar within a certain range. Since 2005, the HKMA has adopted a strong-side convertibility undertaking of 7.75 and a weak-side convertibility undertaking of 7.85; once HKD/USD exchange rate reach the given range, market intervention will be delivered through buying or selling US dollar.