Hong Kong stocks fell, trimming earlier gains, despite the monetary authority cutting its key rate for a second time this year in a boost to the economy.
The Hang Seng Index declined 1.1%. The Tech Index fell 0.2%.
Chinese property developers dragged the market, with Longfor Group tumbling 5.8%; China Overseas Land and Investments dropped 3.8%, and China Resources Land weakened 2.9%.
NetEase retreated 5.6%, Food delivery platform Meituan slumped 4%, Tencent fell 1.8%, and Alibaba fell 1.7%.
Trimming losses, electric vehicle makers jumped. XPeng leaped 15% after launching a new artificial intelligence-powered EV model. Nio added 3.7%, and Geely Auto surged 2.8%.
APT Electronics, a Chinese lighting devices supplier, jumped 48% in Hong Kong after its initial public offering (IPO) raked in the second-highest subscription on record from local retail investors.
China has announced a 6 trillion yuan ($839 billion) program to refinance local government debt, as Beijing rolls out more measures to support a slowing economy facing new risks from the reelection of Donald Trump.
China will raise local governments’ debt ceiling to 35.52 trillion yuan, which will allow them to issue six trillion yuan in additional special bonds over three years to swap hidden debt, the Xinhua News Agency reported on Friday. The plan approved by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress is broadly in line with what economists expected as China seeks to curb financial risks and shore up growth.
The swap is “a major policy decision taking into consideration international and domestic development environments, the need to ensure the stable economic and fiscal operation, and the actual development situation of local governments,” Lan said.
Comments