Hong Kong stocks jump by most in 2 weeks as China injects liquidity, reports add to recovery signs
The city’s benchmark index logged the biggest gain in two weeks after China cut banks’ reserve ratio by 25 basis points from FridayGrowth in retail sales, industrial production in August both exceeded consensus forecastsHong Kong stock marketZhang Shidongin ShanghaiPublished: 11:02am, 15 Sep, 2023Why you can trust SCMP
The Hang Seng Index advanced 0.8 per cent to 18,182.89 at the close, reducing the loss for the week to 0.1 per cent. The Tech Index gained 1.5 per cent while the Shanghai Composite Index dropped 0.3 per cent.
Aluminium producer China Hongqiao added 2.7 per cent to HK$8.09 and hotpot restaurant operator Haidilao gained 2.4 per cent to HK$21.40. Zijin Mining climbed 2.8 per cent to HK$13.16 after gold futures rose to a record in Shanghai. Alibaba Group added 0.4 per cent to HK$86.25, and rival JD.com rose 0.5 per cent to HK$124.60.
The People’s Bank of China lowered the amount of the money commercial lenders must set aside as reserves from Friday. The move injected 550 billion yuan (US$75.7 billion) of fresh liquidity into the financial system, China International Capital Corp estimated.Industrial production in China rose 4.5 per cent in August from a year earlier while retail sales increased 4.6 per cent, the statistics bureau said on Friday, both exceeding market consensus. Still, a separate report showed new home prices fell further in major Chinese cities last month.