HSIC launches ASEAN-focused index

Hang Seng Indexes Company has launched a new index to track leading companies listing in Southeast Asia, as the Hong Kong government has planned to widen financial ties with the burgeoning region amid the escalating US trade war.

The company, which manages and compiles Hong Kong’s market benchmark Hang Seng Index and other sub-indicators, announced on Thursday the debut of the FT Wilshire Hang Seng ASEAN Index in partnership with global benchmark platform Wilshire Indexes.

The index aims to provide a gauge to access the markets of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which is projected to record a real gross domestic product growth rate of 4.5 percent in 2025, far faster than the anticipated 1.8 percent growth of advanced economies globally, according to HSIC’s statement.

The new FT Wilshire Hang Seng ASEAN Index tracks the performance of over 300 leading companies domiciled and listed in the ASEAN-5 markets. The index covers approximately 98 percent of the Singaporean market and 93 percent of each emerging market – Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines – by full market capitalization.

As of the end of 2024, the top four industries with the highest weightings in the FT Wilshire Hang Seng ASEAN Index were the financial sector at 41 percent, real estate at 11 percent, energy at 9 percent, and digital information and services at 8 percent, reflecting the region's economic strengths and growth potential. The index demonstrated a back-tested performance with a cumulative return of 9 percent in 2024.

Last week, Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po mentioned in his latest budget that Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (0388) will strengthen promotion in ASEAN and Middle East and explore cooperation opportunities with countries in the region, including the listing of exchange-traded funds.

Chan also noted that a number of enterprises from ASEAN are seeking to apply for listings in Hong Kong.

STAFF REPORTER