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Eric Ng

Hong Kong blue chips edged up 0.73 per cent yesterday following strong performances in United States and Japanese markets but property counters were generally weaker.

 The Hang Seng Index rose 95.22 points to close at 13,113.2 on a turnover of $7.66 billion.

 Renewed interest in HSBC - which regained its position as the most actively traded stock when it rose 1.96 per cent to $91 on a $773.17 million turnover - pushed the index up 70.2 points.

 First Pacific gained 5.52 per cent to $5.25, while China Telecom firmed 0.97 per cent to $26.

 Property stocks fell on concern establishment of the Urban Renewal Authority (URA) next year - outlined in Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa's policy address - would increase the residential property supply in Hong Kong, analysts said.

 Sun Hung Kai Properties ended 2.41 per cent lower at $60.50 - before the firm announced a 27.79 per cent rise in net profit to $9.27 billion.

 New World Development shed 0.85 per cent to $17.35.

 Warburg Dillon Read research head Franklin Lam said the market had overreacted as new housing supply from the URA initiative would be limited and would not come on to the market for six years.

 'It's a knee-jerk reaction, without taking into account the details of the initiative that have yet to be announced,' he said.

 Brokers said Internet-concept stocks outperformed the market - after a brief shake-out caused by the Securities and Futures Commission's warning of possible market manipulation among high-technology plays.

 Pacific Century CyberWorks rose 5.51 per cent to $6.70, having announced the purchase of a 25.1 per cent stake in Singapore-based SilkRoute Holdings.

 Essential Enterprises rose 10.21 per cent to $2.05, while Chinney Alliance gained 20.28 per cent to 41.5 cents and Leading Spirit High-Tech jumped 20.15 per cent to 15.5 cents.

 Television Broadcasts rose 11.66 per cent to $38.30 amid talk CyberWorks would acquire a TVB Online stake.

 'There is also some spill-over effect from the tremendous gains seen in another entertainment content provider, Star East,' Core Pacific-Yamaichi research head Alex Tang Yee-yuk said.

 Retail stocks performed well on expectations the economy would continue to recover.

 Giordano soared 13.49 per cent to $7.15, while Esprit gained 3.89 per cent to $8.

 Stone Electronic Technology jumped 9.78 per cent to $2.075 on speculation Sina.

com - in which Stone has a 13 per cent stake - would list in Hong Kong and the US, Mr Tang said.

 H shares outperformed, with the sector gaining 1.6 per cent.

 KGI Asia Securities associate director Ben Kwong Man-bun said investors would probably trade cautiously until the end of the year because the risk of an interest rate increase had not disappeared.

KEY FIGURES Close: 13,113.2 (+ 95.22) Turnover: $7.66 bln Volume: 8.03 bln shares Day's high: 13,260.12 Day's low: 13,080.37 Advanced: 351 Declined: 208 Unchanged: 340 October futures: 13,115 (+ 35) November futures: 13,120 (+ 30) 



HSBC tops actives list as blue chips benefit from Wall St and Tokyo gains