Hong Kong stocks cap weekly loss on tensions whiplash as investors await data and plenum
Traders turn their attention to China’s economic growth figures and the Communist Party’s fourth plenum next week
The Hang Seng Index tumbled 2.5 per cent to 25,247.10 at the close on Friday, the steepest decline since a 13 per cent plunge on April 7 sparked by US President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” global tariffs. The drop stretched the loss to 4 per cent for the week. The Hang Seng Tech Index slumped 4.1 per cent.
On the mainland, the CSI 300 Index slid 2.3 per cent and the Shanghai Composite Index retreated 2 per cent.
BYD Electronics International plummeted 8.1 per cent to HK$37.74 and Chinese chipmaker Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp sank 6.5 per cent to HK$69.10. Alibaba Group Holding slid 4.2 per cent to HK$154.40 and Tencent Holdings lost 1.9 per cent to HK$608, while Meituan shed 4.3 per cent to HK$94.50.
On the positive side, Hansoh Pharmaceutical Group defied the sell-off, rallying 2.1 per cent to HK$36.50 after granting Swiss drug maker Roche a license to develop a new drug. Retailer Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group surged 5 per cent to HK$16.52 on media reports it would raise product prices.
The week-long turmoil on Hong Kong stocks underscored the shift of sentiment and growing pressure on investors to book profits after the Hang Seng Index gained more than 30 per cent this year to make it among the best-performing benchmarks globally. Official data released this week also showed that China’s deflationary trend persisted into September and the migration of household savings to equities slowed its pace.