The Hang Seng rose 95 points or 0.4% to end at 23,579 on Thursday, marking its second straight session of gains. Sentiment strengthened after U.S. President Trump suggested he may cut tariffs on China to facilitate the sale of TikTok by its owner, ByteDance.
A slight drop of 0.3% yoy in Chinese industrial profits for the first two months of 2025 also provided support after a 3.3% drop in 2024. Most sectors advanced after JPMorgan joined other Wall Street banks in turning more bullish on China, raising its Q4 2025 target for the MSCI China Index to 95, about 7% higher than its prior call.
Meanwhile, U.S. futures edged higher after Wednesday's losses on Wall Street. However, markets trimmed early gains amid caution ahead of China's March PMI data next week. Tech and auto stocks led rises, shrugging off concerns over U.S. car tariffs. Pharma stocks also performed well, with Innovent Biologics surging 18.4%, while Wuxi Biologics (6.1%) and Hansoh Pharmaceutical (6.0%) posted solid gains.
Source: Trading Economics
