Japan should consider setting up a special economic zone for global banking businesses now that Hong Kong is losing its appeal as a financial hub amid China’s crackdown, Japanese Minister of Finance Taro Aso said yesterday.
Hong Kong’s ability to function as an international finance hub is being eroded, Aso told reporters in Tokyo.
“We need to think about a lot of things, including setting up something like a special zone” for the industry, Aso said.
Photo: Bloomberg
His comments came after Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Monday said that he wants to build an international financial center in the country.
If Japan is going to win more business in global finance, it needs to encourage more use of English, end the tradition of requiring documents to be physically stamped, and adjust various rules for foreign workers, Aso said.
“Doing this will of course help revitalize the Japanese market. We’ve received orders to take action with a sense of speed,” he said.
Past efforts to create special economic zones to boost growth were not focused enough, but the idea could work now with Hong Kong losing its attractiveness, SMBC Nikko Securities Inc economist Koya Miyamae said.
“The situation in Hong Kong isn’t going back to the way it was,” he said, adding that Japan would still need to offer measures such as tax breaks to lure businesses away.
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