China and Hong Kong stocks jump on fresh property stimulus

China Overseas Land & Investment

17/05/2024 09:45

(Updates to market close)
    By Summer Zhen
       HONG KONG, May 17 (Reuters) - China and Hong Kong stocks
ended on a buoyant note on Friday as traders cheered Beijing's
sweeping steps to stabilise the crisis-hit property sector. 
    Led by homebuilders, most sectors advanced in the noon
session after China announced a raft of measures spanning from
allowing local governments to buy "some" apartments, relaxing
mortgage rules, to pledging to deliver unfinished homes.
    The steps have offset the stalling sentiment in the morning
after disappointing retail sales and property data.
        "We've seen increased urgency from policymakers to
stabilise the housing market, which is welcome news after we saw
April's housing prices with the steepest month-on-month decline
of the current cycle," said Lynn Song, chief economist of
Greater China at ING.
    CSI 300 Real Estate index  .CSI000952  and Hong Kong-listed
mainland property firms  .HSMPI  jumped 9% and 5%, respectively.
    
** At the close, the Shanghai Composite index  .SSEC  was up
1.01% at 3,154.03.
** The blue-chip CSI300 index  .CSI300  was up 1.03%, with its
financial sector sub-index  .CSI300FS  higher by 2.14%, the
consumer staples sector  .CSI000912  up 1.09%, the real estate
index  .CSI000952  up 9.13% and the healthcare sub-index
 .CSI300HC  down 0.29%.
 
** The smaller Shenzhen index  .SZSC  ended up 1.18% and the
start-up board ChiNext Composite index  .CNT  was higher by
1.124%.
    
** In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index  .HSI  was up 177.08
points, or 0.91%, at 19,553.61. The Hang Seng China Enterprises
index  .HSCE  rose 0.92% to 6,934.7.
** The sub-index of the Hang Seng tracking energy shares
 .HSCIE  rose 0.7%, while the IT sector  .HSCIIT  rose 1.36%,
the financial sector  .HSNF  ended 0.53% higher and the property
sector rose 2.52%.
** Around the region, MSCI's Asia ex-Japan stock index
 .MIAPJ0000PUS  was weaker by 0.14%, while Japan's Nikkei index
 .N225  closed down 0.34%.

 (Reporting by Summer Zhen; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee
and Sohini Goswami)
 ((summer.zhen@thomsonreuters.com; 852-3462-7739;))