Hong Kong stocks fall on coronavirus' economic toll

China Resources Gas

30/03/2020 10:07

* HK->Shanghai Connect daily quota used 1.2%, Shanghai->HK
daily
quota used 8.4%
    * HSI -1.3%, HSCE -1.1%, CSI300 -1.0%
    * FTSE China A50 -0.6%

    March 30 (Reuters) - Hong Kong stocks settled lower on
Monday as investors braced for a deep recession in the global
economy with more countries tightening or imposing lockdowns to
contain the spread of the coronavirus outbreak. 
    ** At the close of trade, the Hang Seng index  .HSI  was
down 309.17 points, or 1.32%, at 23,175.11. The Hang Seng China
Enterprises index  .HSCE  fell 1.08% to 9,402.17.
    ** The sub-index of the Hang Seng tracking energy shares
 .HSCIE  dipped 0.3%, while the IT sector  .HSCIIT  fell 1.71%,
the financial sector  .HSNF  ended 1.07% lower and the property
sector declined 1.33%.
    ** The top gainer on the Hang Seng was PetroChina Co Ltd
 0857.HK , which climbed 2.75%, while the biggest loser was
Sands China Ltd  1928.HK , which fell 4.92%.
    ** China's main Shanghai Composite index  .SSEC  closed down
0.9% at 2,747.21, while the blue-chip CSI300 index  .CSI300 
ended down 0.97%.
    ** A rising tide of national lockdowns threatened to
overwhelm policymakers' frantic efforts to cushion the fallout
from the virus outbreak.  
    ** A new wave of downward correction could come as companies
will start to first-quarter publish results in early April,
which could be bad due to the outbreak, brokerage house Guodu
Hong Kong said  in a report. 
    ** China's central bank unexpectedly cut the rate on reverse
repurchase agreements by 20 basis points, the largest in nearly
five years, as authorities stepped up measures to relieve
pressure on an economy ravaged by the pandemic.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2BN0QC 
    ** In a note to clients, Capital Economics said, "a lot more
easing will be needed, especially on the fiscal front, to help
the economy return to its pre-virus trend."
    ** Activity in the vast manufacturing sector likely remained
in contraction in March, though it was set to stabilise slightly
from the virus-led collapse that virtually paralysed the world's
second-biggest economy.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2BN1XE 
    ** Around the region, MSCI's Asia ex-Japan stock index
 .MIAPJ0000PUS  was weaker by 0.38%, while Japan's Nikkei index
 .N225  closed down 1.57%.
    ** The yuan  CNY=CFXS  was quoted at 7.0918 per U.S. dollar
at 08:08 GMT, 0.07% firmer than the previous close of 7.097. 

 (Reporting by the Shanghai Newsroom; Editing by Subhranshu
Sahu)
 ((luoyan.liu@thomsonreuters.com; Reuters Messaging:
luoyan.liu.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))