Hong Kong stocks extend run of losses for fourth straight day after surge in coronavirus cases in China, US

Hang Seng Index closes 2.2 per cent lower, with airlines and restaurant operators taking the biggest hit as investors expect rebounding demand to weaken again

Casino operators fall on concerns that China is strengthening regulation over the illegal flow of capital into gaming hub of Macau

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A security guard wearing a protective mask and suit stands at a checkpoint outside Xinfadi market in Beijing, which has been linked to a new cluster of coronavirus cases. Photo: AFP

Published: 9:22am, 15 Jun 2020Updated: 5:11pm, 25 Oct 2020

Hong Kong and China stocks plunged on Monday, after a new cluster of Covid-19 infections in Beijing and a spike in cases in the United States raised concerns over a second coronavirus wave in both countries.

The Hang Seng Index dropped by as much as 2.5 per cent, before paring some of the losses to 2.2 per cent to 23,776.95, declining for the fourth straight session. The Shanghai Composite Index lost 1 per cent to close at 2,890.03.

The weakness in market came after China recorded 39 new locally-transmitted cases of coronavirus on Sunday, with 36 of them in Beijing and three in the adjacent province of Hebei, health authorities said on Monday.

On Saturday, China’s capital confirmed 44 new local cases, the highest daily tally in two months, in a shocking surge after the country brought the pandemic largely under control since late March.

While the origin of the new infections remains unknown, many of them are residents living near or working at Beijing’s biggest wholesale food market Xinfadi, local government said.

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