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	         The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) today (September 21) published the September 2006 issue of its Quarterly Bulletin.
     This Bulletin contains three feature articles:
       - Hong Kong's business cycle synchronisation 
         with Mainland China and the US - showing 
         that, despite increasing integration between
         the Hong Kong and Mainland economies, 
         co-movements of business cycles between the
         two are mainly explained by developments in 
         the US affecting both.
       - The validation of internal rating systems 
         for capital adequacy purposes - describing 
         the main features of the validation standards 
         the HKMA will use to determine whether 
         authorised institutions are eligible to use 
         their internal ratings systems to calculate 
         the supervisory capital requirements for 
         credit risk.
       - Forecasting the non-rental component of Hong
         Kong's CCPI inflation - an indicator 
         approach - concluding that the selected 
         indicator models can improve the accuracy of 
         inflation forecasts for Hong Kong.
     The Bulletin also includes a speech entitled "The debt market of Hong Kong - what can we offer to investors?" given by YK Choi, Deputy Chief Executive of the HKMA, at the third Annual Asia Pacific Bond Congress on June 13, 2006.  The speech gave an overview of Hong Kong's debt market and its attractions. 
     The Quarterly Bulletin may be ordered from the HKMA at $100 per copy.  The Bulletin may also be bought at the HKMA Information Centre on 55th Floor, Two International Finance Centre.  The full text of the Bulletin (http://www.info.gov.hk/hkma/eng/public/qb_index.htm) is available on the HKMA website.  
For further enquiries, please contact:
Sara Yip, Manager (Press), at 2878 8246 or
Hing-Fung Wong, Officer (Press), at 2878 1802
	    
  	  Ends/Thursday, September 21, 2006
Issued at HKT 16:33
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