Hong Kong stocks pare gains after a strong start as weak Chinese data, protests weigh on sentiment
- Smartphone components maker Sunny Optical Technology (Group) was the day’s biggest gainer, jumping 8.7 per cent
- Cathay Pacific reverses four days of losses to rise 2.83 per cent
Hong Kong and Chinese markets reversed Tuesday’s losses on optimism over US President Donald Trump’s tariff concession, but gains were capped because of weak economic data from the mainland and ongoing protests in the city.
The Hang Seng Index closed up 0.1 per cent at 25,302.28 on Wednesday. Twenty of the gauge’s 50 constituent stocks ended higher compared with only one in the previous session.
The gains were led by smartphone components maker Sunny Optical Technology (Group), which jumped 8.7 per cent to HK$93.95 on the back of strong earnings. The tech subindex was the biggest gainer among the nine industry gauges, rising 2 per cent.
The inability of the index to hold on to morning gains showed just how bearish investors were in Hong Kong, according to Castor Pang Wai-sun, head of research at brokerage Core Pacific Yamaichi.
“There is not very strong confidence in the Hong Kong stock market, particularly right now, even though Trump is trying to elevate the situation by delaying tariffs on some goods,” he said.
The US said it would delay some of the 10 per cent tariffs on Chinese consumer goods until mid-December, including some laptops, mobile phones, toys and clothing, sparking a 1.7 per cent jump in the Hang Seng Index at the open.