Hongkong Typhoon-stock and derivatives markets will be shut

HONG KONG—Hong Kong's stock and derivatives markets will be shut all of Thursday as strong winds and heavy rain from Typhoon Nesat are keeping most businesses and public transport services in the city closed.

The Hong Kong Observatory said it expects to keep the Signal No. 8 Tropical Cyclone Warning in place for much today's daylight hours, even as the storm slowly moves away from the city.

With a Signal No. 8 or above, all markets, offices, schools and nonessential government departments close. Hong Kong's stock and derivatives markets were already shut for the morning session.

The observatory earlier in the morning issued the Signal No. 8 warning as Typhoon Nesat approached the city. At 0400 GMT, the typhoon was further from the city, centered about 370 kilometers southwest of Hong Kong compared with 350 kilometers an hour earlier.

Under Hong Kong stock-exchange arrangements, if a Signal No. 8 remains in place after 0400 GMT, trading will be suspended for the entire day.

With markets shut on the day September futures expire—today is the second-to-last trading day for the month—the Hong Kong exchange said final settlement prices for index futures and futures contracts will be calculated using the average of the index and relevant stock price quotations in the market's next trading day instead.

Typhoon Nesat, which earlier ravaged parts of the Philippines, has so far brought little damage to Hong Kong. Local media reported only a few cases of trees being brought down and collapsed scaffolding at several construction sites.

Hong Kong's Airport Authority said it has so far recorded 83 delayed flights and eight cancellations, while two incoming flights were diverted as a result of bad weather. Hong Kong's main airline, Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd.and its China-focused unit, Hong Kong Dragon Airlines Ltd., said their flight operations remain normal.

The observatory issued the storm signal 3 warning Tuesday. There are five levels in the observatory's typhoon warning scale: signal one, three, eight, nine, and ten.

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