Hong Kong stocks close higher on afternoon rally amid light trading
Hang Seng Index closed up on Tuesday thanks to an afternoon rally led by HSBC
Hong Kong markets closed up on Tuesday after a late-afternoon rally, but turnover remained thin with Chinese markets closed and little data to drive trading, analysts said.
The Hang Seng Index ended trading up 0.37 per cent or 87.49 points to 23,671.92 while the Hang Seng China Enterprises index added 0.70 per cent or 68.19 points to close at 9,751.56.
Mainland markets are closed this week for a national holiday, causing turnover to remain thin at HK$47.19 billion, down from Monday’s HK$49.11 billion.
“There’s very little data overnight to drive the markets or worry the markets at this stage and volumes remain light with China closed,” Haitong International Security’s sales trading managing director Andrew Sullivan said.
“There’s no real macro news to drive this market ... You’re trading with a third less in the market,” he said, referring to the lack of southbound flows from Shanghai-Hong Kong stock connect.
It had been a weak morning after jitters over a possible United States interest rate rise next month, but the market rallied in the afternoon after Deutsche Bank traded stronger in Europe on its lower-than-expected settlement with the US Department of Justice, he said.
