Market Wrap: Hong Kong stocks rise for 10th day on capital boost

Jeanny Yu

Published: 4:34pm, 25 Oct 2012

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Hong Kong stocks rose for a 10th straight day, hitting a new 14-month high, backed by surging capital inflows and by strong gains in the gaming sector and some nuclear stocks.

Profit-taking was seen in some small cap stocks, including some solar firms, but blue chips remained in demand, particularly after state-owned energy giant CNOOC reported better-than-estimated third-quarter earnings.

“CNOOC’s result lifted market sentiment today and investors are expecting that earnings in the pipeline won’t be disappointing,” said Matthew Kwok, vice president for global investment strategy, Haitong International Securities Group.

The benchmark Hang Seng Index added 46.45 points, or 0.21 per cent, to close at 21,810.23 on Thursday, its highest level since August 4, 2011. Turnover was HK$61.25 billion, down from Friday’s HK$68.7 billion.

The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index, which tracks the performance of Hong Kong-listed Chinese firms, lost 22.30 points, or 0.21 per cent, to finish at 10,616.43.

Chinese banks gained ahead of corporate earnings. Bank of China (3988.HK), which is due to report earnings after the market close on Thursday, added 0.96 per cent to finish at HK$3.15.

Casino players jumped after Galaxy Entertainment Group (0027.HK) posted a 46 per cent gain in third-quarter net profit. The stock gained 3.59 per cent to finish at HK$25.95. SJM Holdings (0880.HK) added 3.66 per cent to close at HK$17.56.

Angang Steel (0347.HK) lost 1.09 per cent to finish at HK$4.54, after it recorded a 1.19 billion yuan net third-quarter loss, compared with a 19 million yuan net profit a year earlier, although some analysts expect expect earnings to rebound in the fourth quarter.

The fourth quarter “should be a sequentially better quarter for Angang as it has better arrangements for its raw material sourcing,” Ephrem Ravi, Head of Metals & Mining, Asia Ex-Japan Equity Research for Barclays, said in a note to clients.

Harbin Electric (1133.HK) added 3.67 per cent to finish at HK$6.78. China will approve a small number of nuclear reactors to be build in coastal areas, but inland area will not be allowed to build nuclear projects before 2015, the government said on Wednesday.

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