Hong Kong Stocks Weaken, But Poised for Weekly Gains
Hong Kong stocks fell 144 points, or 0.6%, to 24,936 in early trading on Friday, ending a four-day winning streak amid widespread weakness. Caution prevails ahead of China's July CPI and PPI data due Saturday, with consumer prices expected to ease slightly and producer deflation likely to persist amid ongoing trade risks.
On the domestic front, Hong Kong's foreign exchange reserves fell to a three-month low of USD 425.4 billion in July. Semiconductor Manufacturing shares plunged 4.7% after missing second-quarter profit estimates, while MGM China (-4.3%), Kingdee Intl. Software (-4.2%), SITC Intl. (-2.5%), and Mixue Group (-2.4%) also posted significant losses.
However, the Hang Seng is on track for a weekly gain of around 1.8%, recovering from last week's 3.5% decline. Sentiment strengthened earlier this week after US President Trump stated that a trade deal with China was close, and that he planned to meet President Xi before the end of the year if progress continued. China's July trade data, which beat expectations, also supported optimism. (alg)
Source: Trading Economics
