Hong Kong stocks rise to 1-week high on more policy bets after Shenzhen cuts down payment for second-home buyers

Longfor Group leads Chinese property stocks higher after Shenzhen halved the down payment ratio for second-home purchases

New World Development slides 4.4 per cent after making a tender offer to buy back as much as US$600 million of its dollar-denominated bonds

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Pedestrians walk past the electronic ticker displaying stock figures at the Exchange Square Complex, which houses the Hong Kong stock exchange, on November 20, 2023. Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 10:40am, 23 Nov 2023Updated: 4:51pm, 23 Nov 2023

Hong Kong stocks rose to a one-week high as Chinese property developers rallied after Shenzhen lowered the down payments for second-home purchases, the latest effort by policymakers to stem the downturn in the home market.

The Hang Seng Index climbed 1 per cent to a one-week high of 17,910.84 at the close. The Tech Index gained 2.2 per cent and the Shanghai Composite Index added 0.6 per cent.

Longfor Group paced the gains among Chinese developers, surging 13 per cent to HK$15.60. China Overseas Land and Investment jumped 4.4 per cent to HK$15.58, and China Resources Land advanced 3 per cent to HK$31.15. Alibaba Group added 0.5 per cent to HK$77.25 after denying rumours about a massive lay-off plan.

Jewellery retailer Chow Tai Fook gained 2 per cent to HK$12.04 before its interim report later Thursday that may show a 32 per cent jump in earnings. Chinese search engine operator Baidu surged 6.8 per cent to HK$20.10 after Nomura Holdings upgraded the rating to buy from neutral, citing the company’s better-than-expected quarterly result.

Shenzhen, China’s technology hub where Tencent and Huawei Technologies are headquartered, has lowered the down payment ratio for a second home to 40 per cent from as much as 80 per cent starting Thursday, according to a government notice. It is the second first-tier city to do so after Guangzhou made a similar announcement in September.