Hong Kong stocks retreat for a second day ahead of China trade data

China imports are estimated to have expanded 4.7 per cent last month, versus a 1.9 per cent contraction in March, with exports also seen returning to expansion territory
The Hang Seng Index lost 0.9 per cent at close, after gaining as much as 0.7 per cent early in the day

Hong Kong stock market

Jiaxing Li

Published: 10:51am, 8 May 2024

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Hong Kong stocks gave up early gains to fall for a second straight day as investors awaited the release of a key set of economic data which is expected to shed light on the state of China’s economic recovery.

The Hang Seng Index lost 0.9 per cent to 18,313.86 on Wednesday, after gaining as much as 0.7 per cent early in the morning trading session. The Tech Index declined 1.3 per cent while the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.6 per cent.

E-commerce group Alibaba dropped 2.6 per cent to HK$76.05, food delivery platform Meituan lost 1.5 per cent to HK$113.80 while Tencent weakened 0.9 per cent to HK$362.60. Longfor tumbled 7.6 per cent to HK$11.50 while New World Developments slipped 3.1 per cent to HK$8.63, leading losses among mainland and local developer.

Today’s loss adds to a 0.5 per cent decline on Tuesday, which snapped the benchmark’s best run in six years. Sentiment remains cautious as the Hang Seng Index’s 14-day relative strength index still hovers around 70, suggesting that the stocks are potentially overbought and are likely to see a decline.

Signage for Tencent Holdings Ltd. outside the company’s headquarters building in Shenzhen, China, on Wednesday, April 17, 2024. The company’s shares topped the turnover list on the Hong Kong exchange, losing 1.2 per cent on the day. Photo: Bloomberg

The trade data due on Thursday is expected to show more signs of recovery in the world’s second largest economy. Imports are estimated to have expanded 4.7 per cent last month, compared with a 1.9 per cent contraction in March, according to economists’ estimates polled by Bloomberg. Exports were projected to register a 1.3 per cent growth after a 7.5 per cent shrinkage in March.

“The Hong Kong stock market may see some divergence and fluctuations after the recent sharp gains,” Fang Yi, an analyst at Guotai Junan Securities said in a note on Tuesday. Still, there could be room for the market to rise as uncertainties in China’s economy and policies ease, and improving liquidity in global markets will continue to lift up the cheap local shares, he added.

Investors should exercise caution to rotate out of US and Japanese stocks and chase the Chinese rally with headwinds from geopolitical risks, rising bond yields and foreign-exchange markets subsiding, analysts at Morgan Stanley said in a note published today, Hong Kong time.

Other key Asian markets were mixed. Japan’s Nikkei 225 tumbled 1.6 per cent, and South Korea’s Kospi and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained by 0.1 to 0.4 per cent.