Hong Kong blue chips fell 0.1 percent on Monday after hitting a new 6-1/2 year peak as investors sold recent gainers such as China Construction Bank, while weak crude prices led resource shares lower.
The benchmark Hang Seng index set a 6-1/2 year intraday high in early trade before retreating 23.70 points to 18,089.85. The China Enterprises index of mainland H-shares fell 0.8 percent to 7,449.25 after setting fresh nine-year highs on Friday. Turnover was HK$33.7 billion (US $4.3 billion), compared to Friday's HK$37.4 billion.
"The momentum is still to the upside, very much driven by oil prices coming off and the hold on interest rates," said Matt McKeith, Head of Equity Dealing at First State Investments. "There's a lot of money and liquidity out there that people are putting to work, and at this time of year, probably everyone's thinking, 'fourth quarter rally, let's get on with it.'"
Weak oil prices triggered a decline in resource shares, with gold losing its lustre as an inflation hedge. Gold miner Zijin Mining Co Ltd lost 5.1 percent to HK$4.43 in heavy trade; Lingbao Gold declined 3.8 percent to HK$6.76. Top mainland oil producer PetroChina Co Ltd shed 1.2 percent to HK$8.53. Other H-shares also fell following recent gains.
China Life Insurance Co Ltd, the country's top life underwriter, dropped 1.6 percent to HK$16.42. China Construction Bank Corp fell 2.2 percent to HK$3.60. China Telecom Corp Ltd, the bigger of the country's two fixed-line operators, fell 1.1 percent to HK$2.83 after posting a slim rise in quarterly operating revenue as the company pursued new growth drivers to offset a maturing core business. Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd was the top-gaining blue chip. Its shares jumped nearly 3 percent to HK$62.20 ahead of Friday's trading debut of warrants and shares in mainland lender Industrial & Commercial Bank of China.
The market will likely generate its highest turnover on Friday since 1998 when about HK$79 billion worth of shares changed hands. Fertiliser maker China BlueChemical Ltd soared nearly 11 percent to HK$3.31 in heavy trade. China Blue's sister company, CNOOC Ltd has acquired a small state-owned chemical and fertiliser-trading company with total assets of $342 million, leading speculators to believe these assets may be injected into China BlueChemical.