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It's wreak.

And you're probably right. Hong Kong's status made it home to a lot of the financial engineering of commerce between China and the west. With it losing its status, I think a lot of the financial machinery in HK is about to come undone. Singapore will likely benefit, to some degree, from this move. The world and China may need to find new markets and suppliers in the short term.

Doesn't China have more to lose by giving up HK's special status versus absorbing into China's larger political apparatus?

Yes, I would imagine so. HK seemed to be the only conduit through which trade with the west could flow smoothly. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.

https://www.thestandard.com.hk/section-news/section/2/210388... The sceptic in me thinks there is more than meets the eye here.

There won't be any global havoc. It is in the interest of all states[0] for the financial services of Hong Kong to continue functioning. Hong Kong's future is not bright, but it will fall into irrelevance before it explodes into a catastrophe. It will simply be outpaced by the other financial centers in Asia with political stability.

[0] All states with any influence in the matter, China and Hong Kong SAR

How so?