New rules to allow direct share trading between Hong Kong and Shanghai could be in place within six months.

Mainlanders will be allowed to trade a total quota of 250 billion yuan worth of Hong Kong stocks, subject to a maximum of 10.5 billion yuan a day, through mainland brokers. They will place the orders with the Shanghai Stock Exchange, which will then pass them on to Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEx).

Hong Kong investors will be able to trade up to 300 billion yuan of A-shares - subject to a maximum of 13 billion yuan a day - through Hong Kong brokers, who will place the orders with HKEx, which will pass them on to the Shanghai bourse. A total of 266 Hong Kong- listed stocks and 560 mainland A-shares are included in the scheme, as well as the constituent stocks of major indexes.

"Establishing a mutual market connectivity mechanism by a tie-up between the stock markets of Hong Kong and Shanghai would be a step forward for cross-border opening of capital markets between Hong Kong and mainland China," Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said in his Boao conference speech last week. "We are going to have more integration with the international capital market."