Hong Kong Market Expected To Open To The Upside

The Hong Kong stock market rebounded on Wednesday, one day after ending the two-day winning streak in which it had gained more than 230 points or 1.4 percent. The Hang Seng Index now rests just beneath the 17,350-point plateau and it’s likely to open higher again on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on an improved outlook for interest rates. The European and U.S. markets were solidly higher and the Asian bourses are expected to follow suit.

The Hang Seng finished sharply higher on Wednesday with gains across the board, especially among the technology, finance and property sectors.

For the day, the index surged 341.69 points or 2.01 percent to finish at 17,344.60 after trading between 17,015.83 and 17,400.24.

Among the actives, Alibaba Group added 1.44 percent, while Alibaba Health Info surged 5.41 percent, ANTA Sports rallied 3.55 percent, China Life Insurance spiked 3.82 percent, China Mengniu Dairy accelerated 3.80 percent, China Resources Land gained 1.30 percent, CITIC increased 1.69 percent, CNOOC jumped 2.91 percent, Country Garden soared 3.97 percent, CSPC Pharmaceutical climbed 2.65 percent, Galaxy Entertainment and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China both were up 0.46 percent, Hang Lung Properties advanced 1.95 percent, Henderson Land rose 1.15 percent, JD.com improved 1.76 percent, Lenovo spiked 3.70 percent, Li Ning accelerated 3.69 percent, Meituan strengthened 2.73 percent, New World Development soared 3.99 percent, Techtronic Industries surged 4.49 percent, Xiaomi Corporation rallied 3.19 percent, WuXi Biologics skyrocketed 9.71 percent and Hong Kong & China Gas was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is broadly positive as the major averages opened higher on Wednesday and remained in the green throughout the session.

The Dow gained 99.46 points or 0.24 percent to finish at 40,842.79, while the NASDAQ surged 451.98 points or 2.64 percent to end at 17,599.40 and the S&P 500 rallied 85.86 points or 1.58 percent to close at 5,522.30.

The early rally on Wall Street reflected a positive reaction to the latest corporate earnings news from companies like Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Starbucks (SBUX) and DuPont (DD).

Stocks continued to see strength after the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy announcement. While the Fed left interest rates unchanged, as expected, minor changes to the accompanying statement may hint at future rate cuts.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell said in his post-meeting press conference that a rate cut in September would be “on the table” if economic data continues on its current path.

Oil prices rose sharply Wednesday amid concerns about possible supply disruptions due to rising tensions in the Middle East, and on data showing a larger than expected drop in U.S. crude inventories last week. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for September ended up $3.18 or 4.3 percent at $77.91 a barrel.

Closer to home, Hong Kong will provide June figures for retail sales later today; in May, sales slumped 11.5 percent on year.