Hong Kong Shares Inch Up Amid U.S. Economic Data, Mainland China Stocks Dragged by Property Sector

Mainland China stocks dipped on Thursday, led by a decline in property shares, while Hong Kong shares slightly rose following softer U.S. economic data, which raised hopes for Fed interest rate cuts. The Shanghai Composite and CSI300 indices slipped, whereas Hong Kong's H-shares and Hang Seng Index saw minor gains.

Mainland China stocks edged lower on Thursday, dragged by property shares. Meanwhile, Hong Kong shares inched higher after a slew of softer U.S. economic data raised investor bets on Federal Reserve interest rate cuts later this year. ** Softer-than-expected U.S. economic data on Wednesday, including a weak services report and ADP employment report, pointed to a slowdown in the world's largest economy, following an increase in initial applications for unemployment benefits last week.

** At the midday break, the Shanghai Composite index was down 0.43% at 2,969.45 points. ** China's blue-chip CSI300 index was down 0.2% at 3,456.32 points, with property shares leading the losses. A sub-index tracking the real estate sector shed 2.33% as of the midday break.

** "We believe the market still has scope to outperform with continued government policy support and increasing focus on capital returns through dividends and buybacks," Sunil Tirumalai, chief GEM equity strategist at UBS, said in a note. ** "Geopolitics need to be monitored, especially in the run-up to the U.S. elections in November 2024," he said, adding they continued to have an "overweight" rating on Chinese stocks.

** Chinese H-shares listed in Hong Kong rose 0.03% to 6,457.56 points, while the Hang Seng Index was up 0.05% at 17,988.25 points. ** The smaller Shenzhen index was down 0.86%, the start-up board ChiNext Composite index was weaker by 0.22% and Shanghai's tech-focused STAR50 index was down 0.97%.

** Around the region, MSCI's Asia ex-Japan stock index was firmer by 0.92% while Japan's Nikkei index was up 0.78%. ** The yuan was quoted at 7.2713 per U.S. dollar, 0.02% weaker than the previous close of 7.2699.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)