(Bloomberg) -- Hong Kong scrapped trading of stocks and bonds Tuesday after tropical storm Nangka prompted authorities to shutter businesses and close schools.
The move came after the Hong Kong Observatory kept its storm signal at No. 8, the third-highest on its scale, until 7:40 p.m. The warning meant that winds of mean speeds of 63 kilometers (39 miles) per hour or more were expected. The No. 3 signal, meaning wind speeds of 41 to 62 kilometers, replaced the No. 8 and “is expected to remain in force for some time,” the Observatory said.
Most businesses close and public transport becomes limited when No. 8 signal or above is in place. Under Hong Kong stock exchange rules, trading is abandoned for the day if the signal isn't lowered to 3 or below before noon. A typhoon in August last disrupted trading in the city's $5.9 trillion stock market, though it re-opened that day at 1:30 p.m.
Chinese President Xi Jinping is set to visit Shenzhen, neighboring Hong Kong, this week. He is scheduled to deliver an address Wednesday and meet the leaders of Hong Kong and Macau, the official Xinhua News Agency said Monday.
At 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nangka was estimated to be about 520 kilometers southwest of Hong Kong and is forecast to move west or west-northwest at about 20 kilometers per hour across Hainan Island, the Observatory said on its website.
One person sought medical treatment at public hospitals as of 2 p.m. and authorities received eight reports of fallen trees.
Not since the 1960s has Hong Kong's observatory issued a No. 8 alert for a storm passing so far away, local broadcaster RTHK reported, citing its senior scientific officer, Woo Wang-chun. Woo still called it a “prudent” move because Hong Kong is under the combined influence from Nangka and a northeast monsoon, a situation that causes stronger winds, according to the report.
The No. 8 wind signal has previously been hoisted 14 times in the month of October, RTHK cited Woo as saying.
In 2018, the city raised the maximum No. 10 signal when Typhoon Mangkhut left roads blocked, buildings damaged and low-lying areas flooded.
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