Hong Kong stocks log sixth day of losses as Meituan slides on Douyin rivalry while Chinese developers jump as default concerns ease
- Meituan came under pressure as ByteDance’s Douyin expanded deeper into its food-delivery territory in mainland China
- Debt default concerns at Chinese developers eased after Country Garden obtained approval from creditors to delay bond repayment deadlines
The Hang Seng Index slipped 0.1 per cent to 18,009.22 on Wednesday, surrendering as much as 1 per cent gain. The benchmark has lost 4.4 per cent since September 4. The Tech Index fell 0.6 per cent while the Shanghai Composite Index retreated 0.5 per cent.
Limiting losses, oil producer CNOOC added 0.2 per cent to HK$13.14 as crude approached US$100 a barrel. Coal producer China Shenhua climbed 1.7 per cent to HK$23.75. China Resources Land advanced 0.9 per cent to HK$33.75, and peer China Overseas Land and Investment gained 0.6 per cent to HK$16.64.
“For stocks to outperform, it requires more signs of improvement in the economy, such as whether the recovery in home sales will be sustainable or exceed expectations,” said An Qingliang, an analyst at Guorong Securities in Beijing. “The yuan’s weakness is also holding back stocks.”
The Chinese yuan fell to the lowest level against the US dollar in 16 years this month in onshore trading, prompting the central bank to warn speculators about one-way bets against it. China’s economic data for August was mixed, with exports shrinking and consumer prices rebounding from a decline.
Stocks in key regional markets weakened. Traders bet the Federal Reserve will pause at this month’s policy meeting. A government report later today may show US inflation accelerated at an annual pace of 3.6 per cent in August from 3.2 per cent in July, according to forecasts compiled by Bloomberg.