Hong Kong stocks gain as investors brave trade jitters, eye stimulus measures
Investors see trade negotiations between the US and China as likely and are shifting focus towards prospects of policy support, analyst says
Hong Kong stocks rose on Thursday following gains in the US, as traders navigated nonstop news around the trade battle between the world’s two largest economies and eyed policy measures coming out of Beijing.
The Hang Seng Index advanced 1.4 per cent to 20,891.62 at the close, on track for a fourth consecutive weekly gain. The Hang Seng Tech Index rose 2.6 per cent.
Mainland China’s benchmarks rose, with the CSI 300 Index and the Shanghai Composite Index both gaining 1.3 per cent.
Tech-product maker BYD Electronic and electric-vehicle producer BYD led gains among blue-chip companies, jumping 19.6 per cent to HK$53.75 and 11.5 per cent to HK$315.80, respectively. Sunny Optical Technology rallied 9.9 per cent to HK$79.50, while Lenovo Group climbed 5.1 per cent to HK$11.50.
Tencent-backed e-book seller China Literature surged 7.8 per cent to HK$29.05, while Hua Hong Semiconductor rose 7.5 per cent to HK$27.20 and its peer Semiconductor Manufacturing International jumped 7.2 per cent to HK$47.90.
Among decliners, internet giant Baidu dropped 1.3 per cent to HK$86.65, and pork processor WH Group declined 1.6 per cent to HK$6.15. Meituan dipped 0.5 per cent to HK$150.10.
“Our playbook for Trump 2.0 was to buckle up for higher volatility,” Louis Luo, head of multi-asset investment solutions for Greater China at Abrdn, said in a note on Wednesday. Under US-China trade tensions, his firm is investing more in China, as it is better positioned than emerging-market peers in the near term, he added.