Hong Kong stocks' 4-day gain wobbles on tepid earnings, China deflation jitters
stocks took a respite, as disappointing earnings results put investors on edge and concerns lingered that China's deflation would drag on.
The Hang Seng Index fell 0.5 per cent to 24,952.38 as of 10.15am local time. Still, the benchmark has risen 1.6 per cent for the week on bets that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates on the back of the weak labour market data.
The Hang Seng Tech Index dropped 0.9 per cent. On the mainland, the CSI 300 Index and the Shanghai Composite Index both retreated 0.3 per cent.
Wharf Real Estate Investment slumped 7.6 per cent to HK$23.76 after first-half operating profit dropped 5 per cent from a year ago. Chinese chipmaker Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp slumped 5.1 per cent to HK$50.30 after net income for the second quarter fell short of analysts' estimates.
Data on China's consumer and producer prices is due tomorrow. Factory-gate prices probably fell 3.3 per cent from a year ago and consumer inflation may have dropped 0.1 per cent, according to the projection by the economists polled by Bloomberg.
Other major Asian markets were mixed. Japan's Nikkei 225 surged 2.1 per cent, while South Korea's Kospi retreated 0.4 per cent and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.2 per cent.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South China Morning Post
5 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Trump's overhaul of State Department may play into Beijing's hands for decades
During nearly three decades as a US diplomat in China, Southeast Asia and Africa, Matt Ingeneri watched his Chinese counterparts dispense prestigious scholarships, hold lavish banquets and conduct expensive national day celebrations. 'They are very good hosts and can be really charming when they want to be,' Ingeneri, now in the private sector, said, adding that the US State Department budgets were far smaller and corruption concerns greater. 'We had a hot dog on a Ritz cracker.' But Chinese officials also mixed their soft power with unbending deportment when espousing Beijing's red lines, he added. 'It's all fun and games – until you want to keep your claim to the South China Sea.' The US effort to counter China's growing global footprint is difficult enough. President Donald Trump's radical State Department overhaul is not making it any easier and could play into Beijing's hands for decades, according to lawmakers and past and current department officials. 'Our competition with China requires all hands on deck. It's global in nature. It affects virtually every issue, every topic that crosses borders,' said Mark Lambert, a 35-year State Department veteran and former head of its China House overseeing Beijing-focused diplomacy. 'We just gutted [development programmes] ourselves, a huge win for China.'
South China Morning Post
6 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong eases seafood, fruit and electric car rules to tackle US tariff war
Fresh seafood and fruits arriving by air in Hong Kong for re-export can now be transferred directly to mainland China for clearance as one of several new measures to help the city remain competitive in a tariff-laden global trade environment, the customs chief has said. Advertisement Commissioner of Customs and Excise Chan Tsz-tat also told the Post in an exclusive interview that mainland-made electric vehicles (EVs) exported to Hong Kong could now be stored for free at Nansha port in Guangzhou, with the local licence application process beginning during storage to shorten approval times from two weeks to three days. The measures were among the Customs and Excise Department's efforts to further remove trade barriers, Chan said. Hong Kong has been caught in the trade war crossfire between Washington and Beijing, with US President Donald Trump imposing 'reciprocal tariffs' on countries around the world since taking office in January this year. 'In our import and export controls, we endeavour to provide the most fair, just, transparent and predictable regulatory environment,' Chan said. Advertisement From this month, fresh seafood and fruit products arriving by air in Hong Kong for re-export to the mainland could undergo customs clearance checks and quarantine directly in Zhuhai, Guangdong province, rather than in the city, Chan said.
South China Morning Post
9 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
China counts down to start of work on Xinjiang-Tibet Railway
Work is expected to get under way this year on one of the world's most ambitious rail projects with the launch of a state-owned company to oversee construction and operations of a line that will link Hotan in Xinjiang and Lhasa in Tibet The Shanghai Securities News reported on Friday that Xinjiang-Tibet Railway Company had been formally registered with 95 billion yuan (US$13.2 billion) in capital and wholly owned by China State Railway Group. According to the registration, the company's business scope also includes diversified operations such as real estate development, tourism, catering, accommodation and international project contracting. Under the plan, the route will join the existing Lhasa-Shigatse line with a new one from Hotan to Shigatse, forming a roughly 2,000km (1,240-mile) strategic artery linking northwestern and southwestern China. The Xinjiang-Tibet Railway is one of four lines planned to connect Tibet with the rest of the country, with the other services linking the western region to Qinghai, Sichuan and Yunnan provinces. The Qinghai-Tibet line is up and running while construction continues on the other two. 'This ambitious project aims to establish a 5,000km plateau rail framework centred on Lhasa by 2035,' Hubei-based Huayuan Securities said in a research note on Friday.
