Hong Kong shares suffer worst weekly loss in two months amid ongoing protests, Fed rate speculation
- Next 60 days ‘critical’ to solving Hong Kong protests, says Daiwa Capital Markets
- STAR tech stocks end week up by an average 140 per cent
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index finished its worst week in two months, weighed down by worries about ongoing protests, uncertainties about global interest rates and frenzied trading on China’s new technology board that sapped interest in stocks listed elsewhere.
The Hang Seng Index lost 1.3 per cent, or 367.66 points, over the week, closing at 28,397.74 on Friday. That was its worst weekly performance since May 31. The benchmark dropped 0.7 per cent on Friday, snapping a three-session rally.
Turnover on the Hong Kong market failed to breach HK$70 billion (US$9 billion) for the ninth straight session, as investors took a cautious stance ahead of US-China trade talks in Shanghai and the Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision next week. The average daily turnover was $82 billion in June.
In China, the Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.2 per cent to 2,944.54, while the Shenzhen Component Index was little changed at 9,349.
“The next 60 days will be critical” to Hong Kong’s future as the city faces “an unprecedented political crisis”, Daiwa Capital Markets’ chief economist Kevin Lai wrote in a report.