Hong Kong to benefit as China’s carbon neutral goal and urbanisation drive commodities in post-pandemic era, HKEX CEO says

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Aguzin says the London Metal Exchange has seen increasing participation by clients from China, as the world recovers from the pandemic. Photo: Jelly Tse

Enoch Yiu

Published: 9:30pm, 12 Jul 2022

China’s 2060 carbon neutrality goal and urbanisation will be key drivers of demand for commodities globally in the post coronavirus pandemic era, creating huge opportunities for Hong Kong, according to Nicolas Aguzin.

“As the world recovers from the pandemic, the London Metal Exchange [LME] has seen increasing participation by clients from China,” Aguzin, CEO of bourse operator Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX), which owns the UK exchange, told the LME Asia Metals Seminar 2022 on Tuesday. The seminar, an annual event hosted by HKEX, was organised online this year because of the pandemic.

“A huge part of the global demand from green energy sectors will come from China. It is the world’s fastest-growing economy and largest carbon emitter, and it has set very ambitious decarbonisation goals,” he said.

The country needs to build a lot of infrastructure to provide wind and solar energy facilities and to develop more environmentally friendly electric public transport and vehicles to meet its goal for 2060.

“In addition, China’s urbanisation will also be a key driver of commodity demand,” Aguzin said, adding that this involved a lot of infrastructure and residential construction. “The world is undergoing its largest wave of urban growth in history. Almost 4 billion people now live in towns and cities. By 2030, this number will grow to 5 billion, and China will account for a significant portion of this growth.”

China will lead Asia in the next development phase of global commodities markets after the resumption of manufacturing, consumption and infrastructure, Aguzin said.