HSBC Holdings came under selling pressure yesterday to help nudge the Hang Seng Index down 7.54 points to 7,542.19 as investors took profits after the group reported a 126 per cent rise in interim profits on Tuesday.
The shares, the most heavily traded in dollar terms, fell 50 cents to $83.50, clipping 7.22 points off the index. Market turnover, at $3.99 billion, was again moderate.
September index futures fell 35 points to 7,425 to close at a 117.13-point discount to the cash market. Total volume was 7,652 contracts.
Brokers said overseas buyers of utility stocks and Hutchison Whampoa had sent the index soaring close to 7,600 earlier in the day before short-term punters began selling, pushing the index down.
Seapower Securities research director Samuel Lau Kwok-leung said: ''The punters moved in as the 7,600 mark is perceived as a resistance level. They wanted to sell at a high level and on the good news from HSBC.'' The market opened sluggishly, gaining 18 points in the first 15 minutes.
The index climbed steadily to hit an intra-day high of 7,589.55 in the afternoon, 25.51 points off the record high of 7,615.06 reached on August 19.