SHANGHAI: China shares rose on Monday on speculation of further policy easing after news that the country's central bank was set to inject funds into to several banks, while Hong Kong's market gained on positive US data.
The People's Bank of China is set to inject about 200 billion yuan ($32.66 billion) worth of three-month loans into five or six listed banks to keep liquidity ample and support the slowing Chinese economy, four sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Friday.
The news helped push the Shanghai Composite Index up 0.3 percent to 2,347.0 points by midday. The CSI300 of the leading Shanghai and Shenzhen A-share listings also gained 0.2 percent.
"This is the reason for today's rise, but I think the impact is limited and I still remain cautious about the domestic economy," said Cao Xuefeng, head of research at Huaxi Securities in Chengdu.
The anticipated PBOC move comes amid signs that Chinese investors are beginning to bet that the central bank is going to reduce the official deposit rate, now fixed at 3 percent.
But analysts said the market faced strong profit-taking pressure amid worries over the economy, so the market had little potential to rise sharply.
Next in focus will be third-quarter growth data, due on Tuesday.
Shares in domestic software companies jumped after local media said the government would soon start using computer systems developed by Chinese firms. China's government announced in May it had banned government use of Windows 8, Microsoft Corp's latest operating system.
Bringspring Science and Technology Co and Wonder Information Co jumped by their 10 percent daily limit.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index gained 0.4 percent to 23,116.69 points after US consumer sentiment posted its biggest rise since 2007 in October.
The China Enterprises Index of the top Chinese listings in Hong Kong rose 0.7 percent.
Analysts said investors in Hong Kong, like in the mainland, were wary of chasing shares much further given recent volatility in global markets.
"The rise in early trading lacked momentum as people were not willing to trade near the resistance level," said Alex Wong, a director at Ample Finance Group in Hong Kong.
Casino shares extended their gains from Friday when they rose after Sands China posted solid quarterly earnings. At midday, Sands China rose 1.4 percent, and Galaxy Entertainment was up 1.3 percent.
Industrial and Commercial Bank of China rose 0.4 percent, China Construction Banks climbed 0.2 percent, and Bank of China gained 0.3 percent.
Shares in Hong Kong department store operator Lifestyle International Holdings fell 5.2 percent after sovereign wealth fund Qatar Holding LLC said it would buy a HK$4.78 billion ($616.20 million) stake in the firm.
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