(RTTNews) – Ahead of Thursday’s Labor Day holiday, the Hong Kong stock market had finished higher in two straight sessions, collecting almost 150 points or 0.7 percent along the way. The Hang Seng Index now sits just beneath the 22,120-point plateau and it may add to its winnings on Friday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat, with support expected from the oil and technology companies in particular. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian markets are expected to follow that lead.
The Hang Seng finished modestly higher on Wednesday following gains from the oil companies, property stocks and technology companies.
For the day, the index climbed 111.30 points or 0.51 percent to finish at 22,119.41 after trading between 21,848.33 and 22,129.31.
Among the actives, Alibaba Group surged 2.17 percent, while Alibaba Health Info rallied 2.02 percent, ANTA Sports and Nongfu Spring both improved 0.99 percent, China Life Insurance collected 1.57 percent, China Mengniu Dairy spiked 2.10 percent, China Resources Land added 0.57 percent, CITIC expanded 1.72 percent, CNOOC perked 0.12 percent, CSPC Pharmaceutical increased 0.66 percent, Galaxy Entertainment rose 0.36 percent, Haier Smart Home gathered 0.22 percent, Hang Lung Properties climbed 1.11 percent, Henderson Land strengthened 1.85 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas shed 0.29 percent, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China tumbled 2.92 percent, JD.com sank 0.78 percent, Lenovo accelerated 2.04 percent, Li Auto and CKI Holdings both advanced 1.06 percent, Li Ning gained 0.55 percent, Meituan retreated 1.36 percent, New World Development soared 2.15 percent, Techtronic Industries jumped 1.88 percent, Xiaomi Corporation skyrocketed 5.27 percent and WuXi Biologics slumped 1.30 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is positive as the major averages opened higher on Thursday and remained in the green throughout the session, although they came well off the day’s highs.
The Dow improved 83.60 points or 0.21 percent to finish at 40,752.96, while the NASDAQ rallied 264.40 points or 1.52 percent to close at 17,710.74 and the S&P 500 added 35.08 points or 0.63 percent to end at 5,604.14.
The early rally on Wall Street came in reaction to upbeat earnings news from software giant Microsoft (MSFT) and Facebook parent Meta Platforms (META), both of which exceeded expectations.
Buying interest waned as the day progressed, however, as traders digested some disappointing economic data, including a Labor Department report showing first-time claims for jobless benefits rose much more than expected last week.
Crude oil saw considerable volatility Thursday but moved sharply higher after President Donald Trump threatened to impose sanctions on any country that purchases Iranian oil. West Texas Intermediate crude for June delivery jumped $1.03 or 1.8 percent to $59.24 a barrel.
Closer to home, Hong Kong will release preliminary Q1 figures for gross domestic product and March data for retail sales. In the previous quarter, GDP was up 0.8 percent on quarter and 2.4 percent on year, while sales tumbled an annual 13.0 percent in February.
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