Stephen Roach’s op-ed “My views on the future of Hong Kong have evolved” (June 13) contains a typo, I believe. It should read: “My views on the future of Hong Kong were wrong.”
He cites his own column from 16 months ago (“It pains me to say Hong Kong is over”, Opinion, February 13, 2024). He says the Hang Seng has gone up by 60 per cent since then, outpacing mainland China’s CSI 300 at 21 per cent, but he doesn’t mention that the S&P 500 gained only 16 per cent over the same period. He does mention some of Hong Kong’s unique attributes that make it China’s (and Asia’s) top financial centre, but concludes by describing it as “just another big Chinese city”. Given the fact Hong Kong enjoys a reliable commercial rule of law, a freely convertible currency, freedom of money movement and far superior financial market integrity to that of the mainland, it’s a far cry from just another big Chinese city.
Sheldon Ray
Washington, DC, US
