The Hong Kong stock market has finished higher in back-to-back trading days, collecting more than 550 points or 2.3 percent along the way. The Hang Seng Index now rests just beneath the 24,670-point plateau although it may be stuck in neutral on Thursday.
The global forecast for the Asian is negative on rising coronavirus cases and fading optimism for stimulus. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.
The Hang Seng finished slightly higher on Wednesday following mixed performances from the financials and properties, while the oil companies were soft.
For the day, the index rose 17.41 points or 0.07 percent to finish at 24,667.09 after trading between 24,498.94 and 24,808.85.
Among the actives, WuXi Biologics plummeted 4.66 percent, while Hengan International surged 3.71 percent, Sands China plunged 3.53 percent, CITIC tanked 3.24 percent, CNOOC tumbled 3.14 percent, China Resources Land skidded 2.96 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) retreated 2.88 percent, Xiaomi soared 2.42 percent, Techtronic Industries declined 1.96 percent, Alibaba Group spiked 1.92 percent, China Life Insurance surrendered 1.43 percent, AIA Group rallied 1.24 percent, AAC Technologies and WH Group both sank 1.12 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas jumped 1.06 percent, China Mobile climbed 0.97 percent, Galaxy Entertainment dropped 0.96 percent, Ping An Insurance advanced 0.55 percent, CSPC Pharmaceutical shed 0.51 percent, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China collected 0.47 percent, BOC Hong Kong lost 0.46 percent, Henderson Land added 0.34 percent, Hang Lung Properties and Power Assets both gained 0.24 percent, China Mengniu Dairy rose 0.13 percent, New World Development fell 0.13 percent and Sun Hung Kai Properties eased 0.05 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is soft as stocks moved mostly lower on Wednesday, extending losses from the previous session.
The Dow shed 165.81 points or 0.58 percent to finish at 28,514.00, while the NASDAQ dropped 95.17 points or 0.80 percent to end at 11,768.73 and the S&P 500 fell 23.26 points or 0.66 percent to close at 3,488.67.
The weakness on Wall Street followed comments from Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, which offset recent optimism about a new stimulus bill. He said getting something done on a new stimulus bill before the election "would be difficult."
A negative reaction to the latest batch of earnings news also weighed, with Bank of America (BAC) shares falling sharply after the financial giant reported Q3 earnings that beat estimates but missed on revenues. Wells Fargo (WFC) and UnitedHealth (UNH) also were key drags.
Crude oil prices moved higher Wednesday despite concerns about the energy demand outlook amid a continued surge in coronavirus cases and fresh lockdown restrictions. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for November ended up $0.84 or 2.1 percent at $41.04 a barrel.
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