The Hong Kong dollar held at the top of its trading band against the US dollar on Friday, prompting the city's central bank to step into the market for the fourth straight day to prevent the local currency from rising beyond its fixed range, amid continuous fund flows into the territory.
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) intervened in the forex market on Friday and sold HK$3.488 billion ($450 million) for US dollars as the local currency repeatedly hit 7.7500 to the US dollar - its upper trading level. The HKD has been boosted by strong capital inflows, with investors pouring money into the city's asset markets as a weak US dollar makes them attractive and on optimism over China's economic growth and expectations that the Chinese yuan will continue to appreciate.