USD
HKD
What USDHKD is
USDHKD is the US dollar priced in Hong Kong dollars. The US dollar is the base currency (the one you buy or sell), and the Hong Kong dollar is the quote currency (the one the price is shown in). The quote tells you how many Hong Kong dollars one US dollar costs.
If the price rises, the US dollar has strengthened against the Hong Kong dollar. If it falls, the Hong Kong dollar has strengthened. Buying USD/HKD means you gain if the price rises. Selling means you gain if it falls. Both directions can also lose.
USD/HKD sits outside the major and minor pairs. Brokers usually group it with exotic pairs. For background, see Majors, minors, exotics and Currency pairs.
How to read the quote, pip size and pip value
A pip is the standard unit of price change for a pair. A lot is the standard trade size. Your pip value depends on the lot size, the pip size and the exchange rate.
Because the quote currency is the Hong Kong dollar, the pip value is first worked out in HKD. If your account is in USD or PKR, it is then converted at the current rate. This means pip value in your account currency changes slightly as the rate moves.
Do not rely on a pip size from memory. Check the number of digits and the contract size in the instrument specification in your platform. Then use the calculator below.
Fill in the empty fields to see the result.
The USD/HKD peg: the Linked Exchange Rate System
The Hong Kong dollar is tied to the US dollar under the Linked Exchange Rate System (LERS). The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) keeps USD/HKD inside a narrow, published band.
The band has two ends:
- Strong-side convertibility undertaking. If the Hong Kong dollar strengthens to the strong end, the HKMA sells Hong Kong dollars and buys US dollars.
- Weak-side convertibility undertaking. If the Hong Kong dollar weakens to the weak end, the HKMA buys Hong Kong dollars and sells US dollars.
These operations change the aggregate balance, which is the amount of interbank liquidity in Hong Kong. When the HKMA buys Hong Kong dollars, the aggregate balance shrinks and local rates tend to rise. When it sells, the balance grows and local rates tend to fall.
Because of the band, USD/HKD usually moves in small steps compared with free-floating pairs. A narrow range does not make it safe. With leverage, small moves can still produce large gains or losses. A change to the peg system would be a major event that the market cannot fully price in advance.
What tends to move USD/HKD inside the band
The HIBOR–SOFR gap
HIBOR is the Hong Kong interbank rate. SOFR is a US dollar overnight rate. When HIBOR is well below US rates, traders borrow Hong Kong dollars and hold US dollars to earn the difference. This is called a carry trade, and it pushes USD/HKD towards the weak side of the band. When HIBOR rises above US rates, the flow can reverse.
US dollar drivers
- Fed policy and the dot plot. Rate decisions and Fed members' rate projections change US yields and the carry gap.
- US jobs (NFP) and CPI. Non-farm payrolls and inflation data shift expectations for Fed policy.
- Treasury yields. Higher US yields widen the gap against HIBOR. Lower yields narrow it.
- Global risk appetite. Flows into or out of Hong Kong equities, including large share listings and dividend seasons, change the demand for Hong Kong dollars.
Hong Kong dollar drivers
- HKMA operations at the band edges and the size of the aggregate balance
- Local funding demand, which can lift HIBOR around quarter-ends and year-end
- Capital flows linked to mainland China. Compare with USD/CNH.
See Fundamental analysis and SBP rates and economy for how central bank decisions feed into prices.
Liquidity by session and spread behaviour
- Asian session. Hong Kong is open, so local flows and HKMA activity matter most.
- London and New York sessions. US dollar flows dominate, especially around US data releases.
- Rollover and quiet hours. Liquidity thins and spreads often widen.
Spreads on exotic pairs are usually wider than on majors. They can widen further around news, at session changes and at the weekly open. Prices can also gap over the weekend, which means the market opens at a different price from Friday's close. A stop-loss may then fill at a worse price than you set.
USDHKD at Exness: what the sourced facts say
USDHKD is named in the Exness list of instruments eligible for unlimited leverage: Forex majors and minors, DXY, USDCNH, HKDJPY, USDHKD, USDTHB; all commodities except XAUUSD247; BTCUSD, BTCUSDT, ETHUSD, ETHBTC.
- Unlimited leverage conditions. Unlimited leverage applies only if you meet these conditions: on real accounts: equity below 5,000 USD and at least 10 closed orders totalling 5 lots or more across real accounts.
- Leverage around news. During higher margin requirement (HMR) periods, forex leverage is 1:200 (0.5%). This applies from 15 minutes before to 90 seconds after high-impact news.
- Margin call and stop out. The levels by account type are: Standard Cent: margin call 60%, stop out 0%; Standard: margin call 60%, stop out 0%; Pro: margin call 30%, stop out 0%; Raw Spread: margin call 30%, stop out 0%; Zero: margin call 30%, stop out 0%.
- Account currency. HKD is among the Standard account currencies: AED, BND, EUR, INR, KZT, OMR, THB, XOF, ARS, BRL, GBP, JOD, MAD, PHP, UAH, ZAR, AUD, CAD, GHS, JPY, MXN, PKR, UGX, MBT, AZN, CHF, HKD, KES, MYR, QAR, USD, BDT, CNY, HUF, KRW, NGN, SAR, UZS, BHD, EGP, IDR, KWD, NZD, SGD, VND.
- Swap. Clients registered from listed Islamic countries, which include Pakistan, get swap-free status automatically: Algeria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Brunei, Chad, Comoros, Côte d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Maldives, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Tajikistan, Tunisia, Turkiye, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan. Other accounts follow these rules: by default all accounts are swap-free on listed instruments; the status can be lost. See Swap fees and Islamic finance.
The spread, contract size, digits, minimum and maximum volume and swap for USDHKD are not in our sourced facts. Check the specification in the platform before you trade.
Fill in the empty fields to see the result.
Leveraged forex and CFD trading can lose money fast. That includes a pair with a narrow band. Set your position size from the margin and pip values first. See Risk management.
Ready to try it on a real or demo account?
Partner link · trading carries a high risk of loss
Legal note for Pakistan residents
On payments, per the SBP, remitting foreign exchange to overseas forex/margin/CFD platforms is not allowed through any payment channel (FERA s.5(1)). Also, per the SBP, the purchase of offshore forex/margin/CFD products by Pakistani residents violates section 4(1) of FERA 1947. On protection, per the SECP, offshore platforms have no Pakistani licence or oversight and offer no legal protection or recourse.
Read Law and regulators and Regulation and Safety before you open any account.
Frequent questions
What does the USDHKD price mean?
It is the number of Hong Kong dollars needed to buy one US dollar. A rising price means a stronger US dollar.
What is the usdhkd peg?
It is the Linked Exchange Rate System. Under it, the HKMA keeps USD/HKD inside a narrow band by buying or selling Hong Kong dollars at the band's edges.
Is USDHKD available at Exness?
USDHKD appears in the Exness list of instruments eligible for unlimited leverage. Check the full specification in your platform.
Why can a pegged pair still lose money?
Leverage turns small moves into large results. Spreads, swaps and weekend gaps add costs and risk.
How do I find the pip value?
Use the pip calculator on this page with your lot size and account currency. Confirm the contract size in the platform first.
