Hong Kong Shares Due For Consolidation

The Hong Kong stock market has finished higher in three straight sessions, rising almost 475 points or 2.4 percent along the way. The Hang Seng Index now sits just above the 20,780-point plateau although it’s likely to open under pressure on Tuesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets suggests mild upside with earnings optimism offset by interest rate jitters. The European markets were mixed and flat and the U.S. bourses were slightly higher and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The Hang Seng finished sharply higher on Monday following gains from the financials and resource stocks, while the properties and technology companies were mixed.

For the day, the index rallied 343.64 points or 1.68 percent to finish at 20,782.45 after trading between 20,299.15 and 20,864.74.

Among the actives, Alibaba Group added 0.95 percent, while Alibaba Health Info rose 0.51 percent, ANTA Sports plunged 3.80 percent, China Life Insurance spiked 3.77 percent, China Mengniu Dairy gathered 0.30 percent, China Resources Land advanced 1.02 percent, CITIC jumped 2.33 percent, CNOOC rallied 2.69 percent, Country Garden strengthened 1.34 percent, CSPC Pharmaceutical eased 0.12 percent, Galaxy Entertainment soared 4.00 percent, Hang Lung Properties tumbled 1.46 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas climbed 1.17 percent, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China collected 1.65 percent, JD.com improved 1.15 percent, Lenovo skyrocketed 5.77 percent, Li Ning lost 0.58 percent, Meituan surged 4.71 percent, New World Development sank 0.70 percent, Techtronic Industries gained 0.67 percent, Xiaomi Corporation accelerated 3.60 percent, WuXi Biologics slumped 1.28 percent and Henderson Land was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street ends up positive as the major averages opened higher on Monday, slipped into the red midday but bounced back into positive territory heading into the close.

The Dow climbed 100.71 points or 0.30 percent to finish at 33,987.18, while the NASDAQ added 34.26 points or 0.28 percent to close at 12,157.72 and the S&P 500 rose 13.68 points or 0.33 percent to end at 4,151.32.

Uncertainty about the outlook for interest rates seemed to spook investors after Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President Thomas Barkin said that he wants to see more evidence of inflation settling back to target before calling interest rate hikes finished.

But he added that he feels reassured by what he is seeing in the banking sector in terms of stability after a couple of solvency issues by individual banks last month.

In economic news, the National Association of Home Builders said the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index in the U.S. increased to 45 in April, rising for a fourth month in a row.

Crude oil prices drifted lower on Monday amid concerns about the outlook for energy demand, while uncertainty about interest rate hikes and the dollar’s rise against other currencies also weighed. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for May sank $1.69 or 2.1 percent at $80.83 a barrel.

Market Analysis