The Hang Seng fell 78 points, or 0.4%, to close at 19,700 on Thursday, reversing its morning gains amid looming tariff risks and concerns over China's sluggish economic momentum. Meanwhile, U.S. index futures fell after Wall Street's S&P 500 neared an all-time high on Wednesday following President Trump's move to boost spending on AI.
Most sectors ended up losing ground, especially technology, consumer discretionary and property. In contrast, financials rose after China's securities regulator encouraged local insurers and mutual funds to boost their equity holdings. Earlier this month, regulators announced plans to work with China's central bank to beef up monetary policy tools and stabilize the mainland's ailing stock market. Some of the biggest laggards included Semicon Manufacturing (-7.4%), Pop Mart Intl. (-5.4%), Li Auto (-3.7%), and Xiaomi Corp. (-2.7%). In contrast, insurance companies experienced increases, such as PICC Property & Casualty (2.5%), China Life (2.2%), and Ping An Insurance (1.8%).
Source: Trading Economics
