Hong Kong's financial secretary has ordered regulators to study how to reconcile Muslim financial rules with local laws in hopes of launching a market for Islamic bonds, according to a speech transcript reviewed Tuesday.

Secretary John Tsang said he hopes to promote Hong Kong, a popular stock market for Chinese companies, as a gateway for Middle Eastern investment in China, according to transcripts from a Monday speech at a financial conference.

"Islamic finance is an important element of the global financial system," he said. "For Hong Kong to be a major international financial center _ not just in the region, but globally _ then Islamic finance must be among our portfolio of products and services."

Islamic finance is governed by Islamic law, or Shariah, which bans the collection of interest, trading in risk and investing in gambling, pork and alcohol businesses. All are components in virtually every global market.

While conventional bonds are based on the legal relationship between borrowers and lenders, Islamic bonds are structured as business transactions. Instead of issuing interest, they revolve around rental payments and dividends.

It has become increasingly difficult to ignore the financial heft of Islamic financial markets.

Tsang said the international Islamic financial market is worth $1 trillion and is expected to grow 15 percent annually.

He has said that more than 300 Islamic financial institutions in more than 75 countries hold assets of more than 0 billion. Islamic business units of international banks manage an additional $400 billion, he said.

Tsang said he visited Malaysia last month, a major center for Islamic bonds, to study its Islamic financial system.

Badlisyah Abdul Ghani, chief executive of Malaysia's CIMB Islamic Bank, said it makes sense for Hong Kong to get into Islamic financing.

The global dollar-denominated Islamic bond market is worth $24 billion, with Malaysia accounting for up to 70 percent of Islamic bonds worldwide, Badlisyah said.

"I think any financial center which has the infrastructure that Hong Kong has would be a good place to do Islamic bond issuance," he told The Associated Press.

He said there is interest among Islamic companies to invest in China and to raise funds for themselves through Islamic bonds issued in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong authorities should follow Malaysia's model and create an Islamic bond market that coexists alongside the conventional bond market, Badlisyah said.

Charles Li, a finance professor at the City University of Hong Kong, said Hong Kong authorities must be careful in balancing local financial norms and Islamic financial regulations.

"The government should study whether our laws are in conflict with Middle Eastern banking systems and laws," Li said. "We can't interpret our laws in favor of Islamic culture and practices."