Heavyweight HSBC spurred the Hang Seng Index to its first gain of the week yesterday as market turnover also increased following two straight days of declines. The benchmark index rose 0.15 per cent to end 23.13 points higher at 14,650.54, with turnover rising substantially to $17.5 billion from Tuesday's $16.1 billion. HSBC added 0.16 per cent to $124.60 on the back of a research report from JP Morgan. Analyst Sunil Garg upgraded the lender to 'overweight' with a $144 target price, citing a substantial derating of the stock which had created a valuation gap between HSBC and its fellow banks. 'A reality check suggests that the market is just about discounting one-year's earnings, once again highlighting the excessive bearishness implied in the stock price,' Mr Garg wrote. Elsewhere, DBS Vickers director of sales Peter Lai Wing-leung said the higher turnover for only a modest gain showed the market was suffering from a 'lack of direction' with avian flu and interest rates uppermost in investors' minds. But he said there was some residual interest in blue chips and China plays, including China Mobile. The mainland's largest cellular operator gained 0.97 per cent to $36.40, while fellow telecommunications giant China Telecom also closed up, by 0.93 per cent at $2.70. Other Chinese plays forcing the index upwards included Lenovo, which rose 1.4 per cent to $3.625, and Denway Motors, up 2.11 per cent at $2.425. Outside the flagship index, Jilin Chemical Industrial was among the 20 most traded stocks, gaining 0.91 per cent to $2.70, as was parent company PetroChina, which finished unchanged at $5.85 having gained 1.7 per cent in early trading. The news was not as good on the H-share index, which shed 4.35 points to close at 4,975.53. The index was trading at a gain for most of the day on the back of solid performance from China Petroleum & Chemical and Zijin Mining - up 1.42 and 6.52 per cent, respectively - before dipping in late afternoon. 'Earlier on, the market was trading on rumours of a revaluation of the [yuan],' Mr Lai said. 'But towards the end of the day there was some profit taking with people looking to spread their positions, which is why the index ended the day lower.' Property stocks continued their downward slide since Standard & Poor's downgraded the sector on Monday, citing concerns about weakening buyer sentiment amid the threat of rising interest rates and the re-emergence of avian flu fears. United States economic data released on Tuesday might also have played a part, with the producer price index for finished goods gaining 0.7 per cent last month. Some market watchers feared the rise could pre-empt an interest rise in the US, although ING Bank said the inflationary outlook remained far from certain. The Hang Seng composite industry index for properties and construction fell 10.63 points to 1951.52. Henderson Land shed 0.57 per cent to $34.55, Cheung Kong lost 0.89 per cent to $77.65 while Swire Pacific dropped 0.58 per cent to $68.45. Meanwhile, garment maker Li &Fung dropped 2.48 per cent to $15.70 on the back of reports that one of its directors had offloaded 30 million shares for about $400 million, Mr Lai said.