A rebound in Hong Kong stocks continued on Friday after China’s central bank signalled more room for policy loosening and strong US economic data reinforced bullish bets on global equities, paring a weekly loss as geopolitical jitters subsided.
The Hang Seng Index gained 0.5%, while the Hang Seng Tech Index also rose 0.6%.
In terms of star stocks, Laopu Gold and Pop Mart rose 7%; Xiaomi and Kuaishou rose 3%; Alibaba and Bilibili rose 2%; NIO rose 1%; JD.com rose 0.8%; NetEase fell 1%; Tencent fell 0.4%.
Stocks recovered from the tumult earlier in the week after US President Donald Trump scaled back tensions by dropping a tariff threat against Europe and touted a framework agreement with Nato to solve the Greenland issue. The dovish tone by China’s central bank is another validation of its commitment to accommodative monetary policies after it cut the rates on structural policy tools including the relending one last week.
China still had room to cut the reserve requirement ratio and the interest rate this year, while sticking to an accommodative monetary policy, said Pan Gongsheng, governor of the People’s Bank of China, in an interview with the official Xinhua News Agency.
Investor sentiment was also buoyed by a strong reading on US economic data. The US economy expanded in the third quarter by slightly more than initially reported, supported by stronger exports and less drag from inventories. Initial jobless claims steadied at 200,000 last week, and personal spending rose at a solid pace in November.