Hong Kong Shares Tipped To Open To The Upside

The Hong Kong stock market has moved higher in three straight sessions, surging almost 1,260 points or 8.3 percent along the way. The Hang Seng Index now rests just above the 16,210-point plateau and it’s likely to open in the green again on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is positive on solid economic data and a spike in crude oil prices. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses are expected to follow suit.

The Hang Seng finished sharply higher on Thursday following gains from the financial shares, property stocks and technology companies.

For the day, the index accelerated 312.09 points or 1.96 percent to finish at 16,211.96 after trading between 15,828.93 and 16,254.93.

Among the actives, Alibaba Group added 1.03 percent, while Alibaba Health Info rose 0.31 percent, ANTA Sports increased 1.07 percent, China Life Insurance accelerated 3.65 percent, China Mengniu Dairy improved 1.41 percent, China Resources Land soared 5.65 percent, CITIC and CSPC Pharmaceutical both rallied 3.04 percent, CNOOC spiked 4.79 percent, Country Garden surged 7.46 percent, ENN Energy skyrocketed 12.41 percent, Galaxy Entertainment gathered 0.74 percent, Hang Lung Properties jumped 2.82 percent, Henderson Land sank 0.47 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas advanced 1.63 percent, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China collected 2.41 percent, JD.com accelerated 3.43 percent, Lenovo strengthened 2.19 percent, Li Ning soared 3,97 percent, Meituan slumped 1.28 percent, New World Development gained 0.96 percent, Techtronic Industries dipped 0.22 percent, Xiaomi Corporation perked 0.29 percent and WuXi Biologics climbed 2.04 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as the major averages opened higher, gave ground midday but still finished well in the green.

The Dow jumped 242.74 points or 0.64 percent to finish at 38,049.13, while the NASDAQ added 28.58 points or 0.18 percent to close at 15,510.50 and the S&P 500 rose 25.61 points or 0.53 percent to end at a fresh record high of 4,894.16.

The early strength on Wall Street came following the release of a Commerce Department report showing stronger than expected U.S. economic growth as well as a slowdown in the pace of inflation in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Buying interest waned over the course of the session, however, as traders looked ahead to Friday’s report on personal income and spending, which could have a significant impact on the outlook for interest rates.

Oil prices rose sharply on Thursday, continuing to benefit from Wednesday’s data showing a larger-than-expected drop in U.S. crude inventory. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for March surged $2.27 or 3 percent at $77.36 a barrel.