Hong Kong stocks ended slightly higher on Wednesday amid investor caution ahead of China Construction Bank's highly-anticipated market debut on Thursday and as bird flu fears hit some retail and China plays.
News of another bird flu outbreak in China saw investors offload some China travel, food and retail plays but this was offset by buying of health-related stocks, brokers said.
China has reported deadly bird flu in chickens and ducks in a village in the central province of Hunan, on the heels of another outbreak in an eastern province but said it had been brought under control.
Hong Kong's blue chip Hang Seng Index closed up 0.23 percent, or 33.26 points, at 14,458.14. Turnover was HK$16.08 billion (US $2.06 billion) compared to HK$16.4 billion on Tuesday.
"Sentiment is still weak, most likely dampened by concerns about the spread of avian flu in China. Travel-related stocks were hit by these concerns," said Louis Wong, research director at Phillip Securities.
Shangri-La ended down 2.29 percent at HK$10.65 and Regal Hotels International Holdings Ltd was down 2.04 percent to HK$0.48. China Southern Airlines Co Ltd, which is due to announce its third quarter earnings on Thursday, fell 3.11 percent to HK$1.87.
"The threat of avian flu may not be a real threat, but the market takes it very negatively at the moment," Wong said. "From the technical point of view, we're now approaching the key support level of 14,300. If we see a break below 14,300, there may be a further wave of selling."
Retail plays Chow Sang Sang Holdings International Ltd fell 4.13 percent to HK$2.90 and Sa Sa International was down 3.42 percent to HK$2.825.
Food plays fell, with milk producer Mengniu Dairy Co Ltd down 0.79 percent to HK$6.30 and Dynasty Fine Wines Group down 1.8 percent to HK$2.725.
Food processor China Yurun Food Group also fell 5.0 percent to HK$3.325, its lowest close since its debut on October 3. Its IPO price was HK$3.70.
But health and medicine plays rose, with China-backed vitamin C maker China Pharmaceutical Group Ltd jumping 12.24 percent to end at HK$1.65, medicine maker Dawnrays Pharmaceutical (Holding) Ltd up 17.65 percent to HK$0.60, and Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing controlled biotechnology firm CK Life Sciences Int'l (Holdings) Inc also rose 3.81 percent to HK$1.09.
Mobile carrier New World Mobile Holdings Ltd fell 3.45 percent to HK$2.80 after soaring 20.83 percent to close at HK$2.90 on Tuesday on merger speculation. It said on Wednesday that it was studying ways of integrating its telecommunications network with that of another mobile operator in Hong Kong.