Hong Kong share prices closed 0.39 percent lower on Wednesday on profit-taking in local property firms, dealers said. The benchmark Hang Seng Index ended 68.19 points down at 17,475.84 on turnover worth 73.86 billion Hong Kong dollars (9.53 billion US). But ICEA Securities told Dow Jones Newswires that it expected the index to hold on to its gains after hitting the 250-day moving average of 17,236 Tuesday.
"In view of bullish sentiment over the China market, we expect the momentum to last in the absence of negative catalysts," ICEA was quoted as saying. The property sector led Wednesday's falls after the territory's jobless rate climbed to 5.3 percent during February-April, its highest level in three years.
Cheung Kong shed 1.9 percent to 84.00 Hong Kong dollars after gaining 4.4 percent since Friday. Swire Pacific fell 0.9 percent to 70.00 dollars after jumping 6.7 percent in the past three sessions. Hang Lung Properties dropped 2.3 percent to 23.45 dollars after rising 10.1 percent in the same period.
J.P. Morgan said it expected the labour market to stabilise in the second half as the global economy continues to recover and Hong Kong continues implementing a series of measures to preserve and create jobs. Lee & Man Paper slid 1.3 percent to 9.00 dollars, while Geely Automobile tumbled 4.8 percent to 1.38 dollars. Cathay Pacific bucked the downtrend to jump 7.8 percent to 11.30 dollars after Goldman Sachs upgraded its rating to buy from neutral.
Comments
Comments are closed.