Daily Report | Shanghai stocks ease ahead of forex reserves data, Hong Kong breaks trend to notch modest gain
Hang Seng ends session 0.3 per cent higher, while Shanghai Composite sheds 1.4 per cent
Hong Kong and Shanghai stocks traded mixed on Thursday, with the mainland markets putting in their worst performance in a week, while Hong Kong stocks were little changed, as investors in both markets looked ahead to the after-hours release on China’s foreign exchange reserves.
The Shanghai Composite Index slipped 1.38 per cent, or 42.17 points to 3,008.42, led lower by technology-related shares. The decline marked the biggest drop this week after the Shanghai benchmark index surged to a three-month high on Tuesday. The CSI300 Index, which tracks large companies listed in Shanghai and Shenzhen, closed down 1.48 per cent, or 48.24 points to 3,209.29.
The Shenzhen Composite Index shed 1.60 per cent to 1,930.26, while the Nasdaq-style ChiNext dropped 2.11 per cent to 2,248.68.
The Hang Seng Index moved up 0.29 per cent, or 59.38 points to 20,266.05. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index declined 0.25 per cent, or 21.30 points to 8,647.33.
Hong Hao head of research at investment bank Bocom International said that investors were taking profit ahead of China’s announcement on the foreign exchange reserves on Thursday amid concerns the data might show intensified capital outflows.
“Capital outflow has been quite strong since last year,”said Hong. “People probably want to take some chips off the table before the number comes out....The market’s still trying to find a direction.”
