- Informative on the World Economy
- The Excitement of the Trading Floor
- Dull, If You Aren't Interested in Economics
- Limited Exhibition
- Where: Hong Kong Stock Exchange above Central Bus Terminus, IFC 2.
- When: 9:30-15:30
- How Much: HK$20
The Hong Kong Stock Exchange is one of the world’s most important centres of wheeling and dealing, and, after Japan and Shanghai, is Asia’s largest bourse. Standing shoulder to shoulder with New York and London, this is where the wheels of the world’s financial institutions turn. Unfortunately, few people actually know what actually goes on in stock exchanges or how they work.
A visit to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange is the ideal way to find out, while also soaking up the adrenalin rush of the market floor.
The building, set in the Financial Heart of Central, hosts a dedicated visitor’s Exchange Exhibition Hall, which has presentations and photos on the exchange’s humble beginnings during British colonial times to its superpower status today. You’ll also find limited exhibitions of the equipment used. The market has a history dating back to the 1890s and the change from bowler hated gentlemen exchanging notes, to the flashing electronics of today is startling.
The main attraction of a visit is the all action hustle of the market floor, as seen daily on CNN. There are windows in the Exhibition Hall looking out onto the market floor. While somewhat more sedate than Wall Street, the red jacketed traders often have multiple phones strung around their neck while they bark orders to buy and sell at colleagues.
