Hong Kong's main Hang Seng index crept higher on Monday as investors shrugged off data showing the Chinese economy slowed within market expectations in the fourth quarter of 2018, amid expectations that Beijing would roll out more stimulus to boost growth. At the close of trade, the Hang Seng index was up 0.39 percent at 27,196.54 points. The Hang Seng China Enterprises index rose 0.72 percent to 10,713.05. The sub-index of the Hang Seng tracking energy shares rose 1.6 percent, while the IT sector climbed 0.84 percent, the financial sector ended 0.26 percent higher and the property sector dipped 0.35 percent. The top gainer on the Hang Seng was Sunny Optical Technology Group Co Ltd, which gained 5.44 percent, while the biggest loser was Sino Biopharmaceutical Ltd, which fell 3.72 percent.
The top gainers among H-shares were China Tower Corp Ltd up 4.58 percent, followed by China Shenhua Energy Co Ltd, gaining 4.39 percent, and Postal Savings Bank of China Co Ltd, up by 3.1 percent.
The three biggest H-shares percentage decliners were Guangdong Investment Ltd, which was down 4.74 percent, Air China Ltd, which fell 3.3 percent, and PICC Property and Casualty Co Ltd, down by 2.9 percent.