Nearly two thirds of mainland investors have profited from buying shares listed in Hong Kong so far this year, according to an online survey jointly released by online brokerage Tiger Brokers and several media outlets including Southern Metropolis Daily.
Hong Kong has been one of best performing stock markets in the world this year, with the benchmark Hang Seng index jumping to hit record highs.
Based on more than 3,500 questionnaires, the survey shows that millennials have become the majority demographic investing in Hong Kong stocks. Of those investors, people born in the 1980s and 1990s accounted for 44.53 percent and 28.95 percent respectively.
More than half of the mainland investors said its standing as a relatively mature financial market is the main reason for choosing Hong Kong stocks, according to the survey.
Newcomers in the workplace and people recently promoted to midlevel management positions in companies have become the majority among H-share investors. Nearly 81.51 percent of these investors have earned a bachelor’s degree or higher.
The survey also shows that more than 85 percent of mainland investors preferred to buy shares of mainland companies listed on the Hong Kong stock exchange, such as Tencent Holdings, Sunac China and Evergrande Real Estate Group.
The survey also finds that 63.26 percent of investors rely on independent research before deciding to invest in Hong Kong stocks.
Nearly 90 percent of mainland investors started to invest in the Hong Kong market in the past three years. This indicates that the Shanghai-Hong Kong stock connect and the Shenzhen-Hong Kong stock connect programs, launched in 2014 and 2016 respectively, have effectively served as more convenient channels for trading, the report said.