Hong Kong Stocks slipped to close the week in the red following a Wall Street tech retreat and a less than encouraging announcement at the end of China's third plenum, with investors now waiting for further details about the government's fiscal reform to boost the economy while facing geopolitical tensions.
At the same time, investment banks are rushing to deduce which way the country's overall economy will grow from here. While Chinese officials briefed reporters in Beijing providing some details about China's plans to build up on its technological advancement, financial markets, and living standards.
According to an analyst report by Goldman Sachs, to achieve an 'around 5% growth rate', more measures are required to ease the pressure so that the demand may start to rise again; fiscal and housing fronts were especially underscored by the report.
The Hang Seng Index fell by 2.03%, or 360.73 points, to close Friday's session at 17,417.68. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index fell by 2.25%, or 141.76 points, to close at 6,165.04.
On the economic front, Hong Kong's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate stood at 3.0% in the second quarter of 2024, unchanged from the March-May figure, a Thursday filing by the Census and Statistics Department said. The unadjusted unemployment rate also stayed the same across the two periods at 1.2%.
A Thursday press release by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority revealed that the Hong Kong government offered HK$25 billion of green bonds under its sustainable bond program. According to the finance secretary Paul Chan, the bond offering is seen to help promote the city's transformation as a green and sustainable finance hub.
On another front, Fitch Ratings said it has kept a neutral sector outlook for all main emerging-market regions in 2024, except for the Middle East and North Africa, with lower inflation and some relief in financial conditions offsetting slightly weaker economic growth and public finance pressures, according to a Wednesday note.
S&P Global Ratings, however, consider the stakes to be high for expanding Asian emerging markets.
In corporate news, Xiaocaiyuan International Holding refiled its documents for an initial public offering on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on Tuesday. The refining comes as the restaurant chain's IPO lapsed in January, according to a report by the South China Morning Post Thursday.
Kam Hing International Holdings (HKG:2307) unit Kam Hing Piece Works has agreed to sell Vietnam-based unit Great Market Global Viet Nam to Jasan Global for around $10.3 million. The company's shares soared 29% on Friday's close.
China Starch Holdings (HKG:3838) forecasts it will turn to a pre-tax profit of about 350 million yuan in the first half, from a pre-tax loss of about 38.3 million yuan in the year-ago period. The company's shares surged 13% on Friday's close.
China Railway Signal & Communication (HKG:3969, SHA:688009) won five projects in the rail transit market amounting to 1.47 billion yuan from May to June, the company's shares however fell over 1% on Friday's close.
Comments