Alibaba, Tencent lead tech slide in Hong Kong amid longest losing streak since July on China slowdown, yuan depreciation

Name: Panic buying in Chengdu as China locks down another megacity to contain Covid-19 spread
Uploaded: 2022-09-07T02:43:37.000Z
Duration: 1 min 38 s
Description: Panic buying in Chengdu as China locks down another megacity to contain Covid-19 spread

Stocks slipped for a fifth day, the longest stretch since mid-July, as weaker-than-expected exports added to signs of China slowdown

Alibaba, Tencent and Meituan paced tech losses in Hong Kong as the Hang Seng Index sank 19 per cent this year

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A stock investor sits in front of a display screen at a brokerage house in Hangzhou in February 2020. Photo: EPA-EFE

Jiaxing Li

Published: 10:43am, 7 Sep 2022Updated: 4:32pm, 7 Sep 2022

Hong Kong stocks fell for a fifth day, the longest losing streak in two months, after a government report showed China’s exports slowed more than expected in August. Concerns about the yuan depreciation and recession in the US also unnerved traders.

The Hang Seng Index slipped 0.8 per cent at 19,044.30 at the close of Wednesday trading, the lowest since the market plunged in mid-March. The Tech index retreated 1.3 per cent, while the Shanghai Composite Index added 0.1 per cent.

Tencent Holdings lost 0.8 per cent to HK$311.60 while Alibaba Group Holding stumbled 0.7 per cent to HK$87.40. Food-delivery platform operator Meituan lost 0.8 per cent to HK$172.10. Baidu slumped 3.7 per cent to HK$132.40, while Macau casino operator Galaxy Entertainment sank 2.2 per cent to HK$41.40.

China’s exports grew 7.1 per cent in August, versus an 18 per cent gain in July, trailing market consensus for a 13 per cent gain. The slowdown added to earlier private and official reports this month showing Chinese manufacturing contracted in August and July.

“Activity is relatively weak due to the continuous lockdown measures, and the losing streak has also impacted the market sentiment,” said Louis Tse Ming-kwong, managing director at Wealthy Securities. The weak yuan will also impact retail consumption, he added.

01:38

Panic buying in Chengdu as China locks down another megacity to contain Covid-19 spread

The Hang Seng Index has fallen every day this month for a cumulative 4.7 per cent setback, following a 3.6 per cent slide in August. New lockdowns from the tech hub of Shenzhen to the auto-manufacturing bases in Chengdu and Guiyang have prompted traders to trim their positions, with the benchmark losing 19 per cent this year.

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