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Hong Kong stocks sink with Meituan, Alibaba losses amid tech clampdown concerns, slower Chinese manufacturing
- Hang Seng Index logged biggest drop in a month as Meituan, Alibaba Group and Tencent pulled tech stocks lower
- A government report on Friday showed Chinese manufacturing slowed this month by more than economists expected
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Hong Kong stocks dropped by the most in a month on concerns China is escalating a crackdown on the nation’s technology giants to rein in financial risks. A government report today also showed Chinese manufacturing slowed more than expected this month.
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The Hang Seng Index tumbled 2 per cent from a six-week high to 28,724.88 at the close, capping a weekly 1.2 per cent decline and limiting this month’s advance to 1.2 per cent. The Shanghai Composite Index snapped a three-day winning streak, losing 0.8 per cent. It also dropped 0.8 per cent this week, almost erasing this month’s gain.
Meituan fell by 3.6 per cent to HK$298, while Alibaba Group Holding retreated 2.8 per cent to HK$225, among the worst performers of Hang Seng constituents. Tencent Holdings slipped 1.4 per cent to HK$623. The Hang Seng Tech Index slumped 2.2 per cent.
“The increased scrutiny of tech companies will be a global and long-running issue now,” said Jin Xiangyi, an analyst at Huachuang Securities. “Against this backdrop, the leading market players will boost investments for structural growth opportunities, which will further intensify competition among them.”
China’s financial-market regulators summoned 13 tech firms with online financial business for a meeting late Thursday evening, asking them to tighten anticompetitive measures in yet another signal to investors that an industry clampdown is ongoing and widening.
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