Hong Kong stocks swung between small gains and losses as investors await more than 20 annual results from companies on the city’s benchmark gauge due this week, including China’s biggest banks and electric-vehicle maker BYD.
The Hang Seng Index slipped 0.1 per cent to 16,461.11 at the noon break on Tuesday, reversing marginal gains earlier in the morning session. The Hang Seng Tech Index also dropped 0.1 per cent, and the Shanghai Composite Index retreated 0.4 per cent.
Wuxi Biologics slumped 3.4 per cent to HK$13.54 before its earnings release later on Tuesday, and its affiliate Wuxi AppTec slid 2.6 per cent to HK$37.85. Gold producer Zijin Mining Group lost 3.8 per cent to HK$14.86 while shipping line Orient Overseas International sank 3.6 per cent to HK$92.65.
Tempering losses, China Merchants Bank surged 4.5 per cent to HK$31.35 and property developer China Resources Land climbed 1.4 per cent to HK$24.65 after both posting results that exceeded analysts’ estimates.
“Expectations for corporate earnings are seeing some improvement, but that will offer limited support for the market as China reiterates [there are] no massive stimulus measures to come,” said Fang Yi, an analyst at Guotai Junan Securities in Shanghai. “The market is expected to trade in a tight range for some time after bottoming out.”
Traders have a busy few days ahead as they sift through 26 annual results from Hang Seng Index members due this week, looking for clues as to whether the rebound spurred mainly by state intervention can hold up during the earnings season. They are also waiting for a slew of US economic data that will offer further insights into the next monetary policy moves by the Federal Reserve.
Full-year earnings for China Merchants Bank increased 6.2 per cent to 146.6 billion yuan (US$20.3 billion) in 2023, beating the consensus estimate of 143.7 billion yuan. China Resources Land posted annual profit of 31.4 billion yuan, against forecasts of 29.1 billion yuan.
Property stocks got an additional boost as China’s central bank governor Pan Gongsheng said that some “positive signals” had emerged from the housing market, which has a solid foundation for healthy and stable development in the long run. Longfor Group Holdings added 3 per cent to HK$110.98 and China Overseas Land and Development rose 1.7 per cent to HK$11.
PetroChina advanced 0.6 per cent to HK$6.50 after its profits rose to a record last year. Baidu rallied 3.4 per cent to HK$104.10 on expectations that its artificial intelligence technology will be applied to Apple’s new products.
Elsewhere, Palasino Holdings, which operates casinos and hotels in Europe, rallied 6.5 per cent to HK$2.77 on its first day of trading in Hong Kong.
Other major Asian markets were mixed. Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped less than 0.1 per cent and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 shed 0.4 per cent, while South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.8 per cent.
