HKEx’s Li in Primary Connect play for Saudi Aramco

As investor attention turns to what is likely to take Alibaba's crown as the world’s biggest-ever initial public offering, exchanges around the world are gearing up for battle.

For Hong Kong, which urgently needs a banner listing after losing its appeal as a global IPO centre for foreign companies and missing out on the Alibaba flotation, the Saudi Arabia government’s decision to float around 5% of the shares in its oil giant Saudi Aramco is heaven-sent, potentially.

And Hong Kong Exchanges Clearing’s latest pitch for the Aramco listing which could raise up to $100 billion is to tie it in with its proposed...