Hong Kong stocks end firmer, H-shares rise ahead of China reopening
21/02/2018 08:09
* Hang Seng index ends up 1.8 pct
* China Enterprises index HSCE rises 2.3 pct
* HSI financial sub-index is 2 pct higher; property up 1.4
pct
HONG KONG, Feb 21 (Reuters) - Hong Kong's main Hang Seng
index .HSI ended firmer on Wednesday, tracking gains in Asian
markets and ahead of the reopening of mainland China markets the
next day. China's H-shares index .HSCE also closed up.
** At close of trade, the Hang Seng index was up 558.26 points
or 1.81 percent at 31,431.89. The Hang Seng China Enterprises
index .HSCE rose 2.34 percent to 12,686.88.
** China stock markets will reopen on Thursday after the Lunar
New Year holiday.
** The sub-index of the Hang Seng tracking energy shares
.HSCIE rose 2.5 percent while the IT sector .HSCIIT rose
2.37 percent, the financial sector .HSNF was 1.97 percent
higher and property sector rose 1.37 percent.
** The top gainer on Hang Seng was Country Garden Holdings Co
Ltd 2007.HK up 5.6 percent, while the biggest loser was Wharf
Holdings Ltd 0004.HK which was down 0.17 percent.
** Around the region, MSCI's Asia ex-Japan stock index
.MIAPJ0000PUS was firmer by 0.81 percent while Japan's Nikkei
index .N225 closed up 0.21 percent.
** As of the previous trading session, the Hang Seng index was
up 3.19 percent this year, while China's H-share index was up
5.9 percent. As of the previous close, the Hang Seng has
declined 6.12 percent this month.
** The top gainers among H-shares were Agricultural Bank of
China Ltd 1288.HK up 4.18 percent, followed by China Citic
Bank Corp Ltd 0998.HK gaining 3.81 percent, and China
Petroleum & Chemical Corp 0386.HK up 3.72 percent.
** The three biggest H-shares percentage decliners were Anhui
Conch Cement Co Ltd 0914.HK which fell 0.6 percent, SINOPHARM
Group Co Ltd 1099.HK which was down 0.3 percent, and Air China
Ltd 0753.HK down by 0.2 percent.
** About 1.99 billion Hang Seng index shares were traded,
roughly 64.3 percent of the market's 30-day moving average of
3.10 billion shares a day. The volume traded in the previous
trading session was 2.10 billion.
** The price-to-earnings ratio of the Hang Seng index was 14 as
of the last full trading day while the dividend yield was 2.8
percent.
** The short and one-factor leveraged Hang Seng index .HSISI ,
which is designed to replicate the payoff of a short or
leveraged portfolio and is linked to the movements of the Hang
Seng Index, was lower by 1.81 percent on the day at 4,663.84
points.
(Reporting by Donny Kwok; Editing by Kim Coghill)
((donny.kwok@thomsonreuters.com; +852 2843 6470; Reuters
Messaging: donny.kwok.reuters.com@reuters.net))
Keywords: HONGKONG MARKETS/STOCKS CLOSER