HONG KONG, April 30 (Xinhua) -- The number of chartered financial analysts soared from about 200 in 1995 to more than 3, 600 now, ranking first in Asia and fourth globally, Secretary for Financial Services & the Treasury Frederick Ma said Monday.

In his latest FSTB & You article on the bureau's website, Ma said Hong Kong's pool of hardworking financial talent is the key factor contributing to the city's success as a world-acclaimed international financial hub.

"This has been conducive to attracting capital and investors from around the world to make use of our capital market. At present, Hong Kong boasts more than 26,000 certified public accountants and 50,000 insurance intermediaries," he said.

Competition in the financial services industry has become increasingly keen in light of globalization in recent years, making the nurturing of talent even more important.

To maintain Hong Kong's competitive edge as an international financial center, the Advisory Committee on Human Resources Development in the Financial Services Sector was set up in 2000 to foster better co-ordination of efforts between the industry and academia on financial services manpower development.

Noting the emerging economic importance of China and the rapid development of Asia as a whole have brought unprecedented opportunities to Hong Kong's financial services industry, Ma called on young people to equip themselves fully by developing language and communication skills, broadening their horizon, committing to life-long learning and acquiring a mindset of " thinking outside the box".