SHANGHAI: China stocks slipped on Monday after soft data fuelled concerns that a slowdown in manufacturing from a bruising trade war will drag on economic growth, while investors harboured low expectations over an upcoming Sino-U.S. trade negotiation.
** Investors were cautious as they counted down to a likely cut in U.S. interest rates this week with much riding on whether or not the Federal Reserve signals are in the pipeline.
** The CSI300 index dipped 0.1% to 3,854.24 points at the end of the morning session, while the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.1% to 2,940.50 points.
** China's industrial profits have been softening since the second half of 2018 as the economy slowed and the U.S.-China trade dispute escalated, with many industrial firms putting off business decisions and scaling back manufacturing investment.
** U.S. and Chinese trade negotiators will meet in Shanghai this week for their first in-person talks since a G20 truce last month, but expectations are low for a breakthrough.
** Stocks rally across the board on China's newly launched Nasdaq-style STAR Market.
** All 25 STAR-listed firms posted gains, led by Beijing Worldia Diamond Tools, which surged the maximum allowed 20% to a record high.
** Allowing good "money-making effect" on the STAR Market in its initial stage will be a focus of Beijing's policies, while preventing a slump in the main board will also be one of the government's targets to maintain stability (in the markets), Tebon Securities noted in report.
** In Hong Kong, stocks hit a more than one-month low amid unrest.
** The Hang Seng index dropped 1.2% to 28,056.83 points, while the Hong Kong China Enterprises Index lost 0.9% to 10,759.08 points.
** Hong Kong police clashed with thousands of protesters on Sunday, as they sought to defend China's main representative office from crowds seething over what many see as an increasing cycle of violence against them.
** Protests over the past two months spearheaded by anti-government activists against a proposed bill that would allow people to be extradited from the city to stand trial in courts in mainland China have grown increasingly violent.
** Around the region, MSCI's Asia ex-Japan stock index was weaker by 0.47%, while Japan's Nikkei index was down 0.39%.
** The yuan was quoted at 6.8934 per U.S. dollar, 0.19% weaker than the previous close of 6.88.
** The largest percentage gainers in the main Shanghai Composite index were Tanyuan Technology Co Ltd, up 9.99%, followed by Zhejiang Tony Electronic Co Ltd, gaining 9.99% and Chongqing Construction Engineering Group Co Ltd, up by 9.94%.
** The largest percentage losses in the Shanghai index were FUREN Group Pharmaceutical Co Ltd, down 10.05%, followed by BOMESC Offshore Engineering Co Ltd, losing 8.62% and Shaanxi Construction Machinery Co Ltd , down by 6.91%.
** The top gainers among H-shares were China National Building Material Co Ltd, up 1.13%, followed by Guangdong Investment Ltd, gaining 1.1% and Shenzhou International Group Holdings Ltd, up by 1.09%.
** The three biggest H-shares percentage decliners were CITIC Securities Co Ltd, which dropped 2.59%, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd, which lost 2.5% and Haitong Securities Co Ltd, down by 2.2%.
** About 7.42 billion shares have traded so far on the Shanghai Exchange, roughly 41.1% of the market's 30-day moving average of 18.06 billion shares a day. The volume traded was 13.93 billion, as of last trading day.
** As of 0416 GMT, China's A-shares were trading at a premium of 29.21% over the Hong Kong-listed H-shares.
Comments
Comments are closed.