Hong Kong tech stocks dropped, halting a rally in week following jitters in global markets after a rout drove a key US technology gauge into a correction phase. The Hang Seng Tech Index dropped 0.4 per cent at the close, limiting this week’s advance to 1.8 per cent. The Hang Seng Index traded lower for most of the day before closing little changed, keeping its 2.4 per cent gain for the week. China’s Shanghai Composite Index retreated 0.9 per cent. E-commerce platform operator Alibaba Group Holding and gaming firm NetEase declined by at least 3.2 per cent while HSBC fell 2.1 per cent. Macau’s casino stocks and property developers surged this week, helping the broader market add US$100 billion of market value on policy-easing bets in China. Markets in Japan, South Korea and Australia slipped at least 0.9 per cent, tracking weaker US equities. A late sell-off in the Nasdaq 100 members on Thursday has now snowballed to 10 per cent from a record-high in November, roiled by the Federal Reserve’s hawkish stance on interest rates. Sentiment Hong Kong was resilient as traders retained bets that China’s policymakers will keep shoring up growth. The central bank has after injected liquidity, lowered borrowing costs and loosened credit in the housing market over the past one month amid a slowdown. “Tightening in the US will have a limited impact on Hong stocks, which are one of the cheapest in the world,” said Zhang Yidong, a strategist at Industrial Securities in Shanghai. “China’s monetary policy is independent from the rest of the world. That will help sustain a rebound on Hong Kong stocks probably through March.” Place your bets on Chinese stocks to beat global peers in the next six months on policy divergence, BCA Research says The Hang Seng Index completed a fifth weekly gain, the longest streak in two years. Even so, its members trade at 11.8 times projected earnings, the cheapest among major markets after Brazil, according to Bloomberg data. Elsewhere, Country Garden slumped 2.9 per cent among the biggest index decliners. China’s biggest developer by sales raised HK$3.9 billion (US$500 million) from a convertible bond sale to help repay short-term offshore borrowings, according to an exchange filing . It will separately use internal cash to repay a January 2022 bond. Macau’s casino operators rallied after China’s State Council unveiled a five-year plan to bolster the development of the tourism industry, in which outbound travels will be promoted on condition Covid-19 is kept under control. Sands China climbed 3.3 per cent and Galaxy Entertainment added 1.7 per cent. Chip maker Halo Microelectronics surged 31 per cent from the initial public offering price on the first day of trading in Shanghai.