Hong Kong traders set aside Donald Trump’s anti-China broadsides to buy stocks battered in Monday’s rout
- Restaurants gain as Hong Kong eases social distancing restrictions
- Bargain hunters snap up shares of beaten-down Chinese oil companies
Bargain hunters swooped back into Hong Kong’s stock market following Monday’s 1,000-point rout, willing to overlook US President Donald Trump’s increasingly angry rhetoric toward China to snap up shares of everything from local restaurant chains to Chinese major oil players.
The Hang Seng Index ended the day 1.1 per cent higher at 23,868.66. It fell 4.2 per cent on Monday.
China’s stock markets will reopen on Wednesday after a holiday break.
Hong Kong’s benchmark is in a bear market after the coronavirus outbreak sent stocks into a tailspin. While it has clawed its way partly out, it is still down more than 15 per cent this year.
“Market sentiment is still good, but there’s uncertainty on the US-China relationship,” said Alan Li, portfolio manager at Atta Capital. “The HSI sees a strong support at 23,500. But upside potential is limited due to very low visibility on the possible action of Trump’s government against China.”
The respiratory ailment, which began in mainland China, has triggered the worst global recession since the Great Depression, rocking global stock markets and leading to about half of the world’s population at one point under lockdown. The pandemic has led to nearly 3.6 million infections and more than 251,000 deaths, with the US being dealt the severest blow, with about 69,000 deaths reported already. The pandemic has sparked a scramble by pharmaceutical companies to come up with treatments and vaccines.