Hong Kong’s gold futures trading has surged on the back of a fee waiver and as the city government presses ahead with plans to become an international trading hub for the precious metal, with volumes breaking a record on Monday.A total of 6,676 US dollar gold futures contracts were traded during the day session, surpassing the previous high of 3,039 contracts recorded in November 2022, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX) said in a LinkedIn post on Monday.Bid-ask spreads for active contract months were as tight as one tick, or US$0.01, for the August contract and two ticks for the December contract, according to the post.The exchange announced it would waive fees for its US dollar gold futures for a year, starting on Monday, as it relaunched the product, according to a circular sent to gold traders.“HKEX’s efforts to revitalise gold futures have drawn broad participation from across the market, including banks, securities firms, high-frequency trading firms, trading houses, gold producers and consumers,” it said in the LinkedIn post.“This is an important step in HKEX’s broader strategy to enhance our gold product suite and deepen our multi-asset ecosystem, supporting Hong Kong’s development as a leading international gold trading and storage centre.”