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Hang Seng Index
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Hong Kong, most other Asia stocks slip on caution over coronavirus, Korean tensions; JD.com jumps in debut

  • JD.com rises as much as 5.8 per cent in secondary listing debut, finishes with 3.5 per cent gain
  • HSBC falls as it moves to resume job cuts

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A woman wearing a face mask walks past a bank electronic board showing the Hong Kong share index at the Hong Kong stock exchange. Photo: Associated Press
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Hong Kong and most other major Asia stock benchmarks slipped, as investors turned cautious amid outbreaks of the coronavirus in mainland China and the US as well as escalating tensions on the Korean peninsula.

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The Hang Seng Index fell as much as 1.5 per cent in early Thursday trading but narrowed its loss to just 0.1 per cent at the close. US futures turned up, improving sentiment. But the decline snapped a two-session winning streak.

JD.com, one of China’s largest e-commerce sites, rose as much as 5.8 per cent in its secondary listing debut in Hong Kong, but trimmed its gain to 3.5 per cent. Due to the coronavirus, the exchange has moved its normally colourful debut ceremonies online. JD.com had its virtual dog mascot bang the gong in its online ceremony as it began trading in what is the city’s biggest listing of the year.
It followed NetEase, the world’s second-largest mobile games publisher, which made its debut in a Hong Kong secondary listing last Thursday. They are the latest Chinese companies listed in the US to launch secondary listings in the city, following e-commerce giant Alibaba, the parent company of the South China Morning Post, last year. Yum China Holdings, whose fast food portfolio includes KFC and Taco Bell, is moving ahead with its plans for a potential US$2 billion stock offering in Hong Kong, people familiar with the matter told the Post. Their moves, coming amid escalating US-China tensions, will eventually make it possible for them to be available to mainland traders through the Stock Connect trading link.

Chinese telecom equipment maker ZTE Corp. soared 22 per cent to HK$27.75, closing at its highest level since mid-March, after the company said it has started mass producing 7-nanometre chips and imported the technology for the 5nm process.

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Meanwhile, the Shanghai Composite Index turned up, closed ahead by 0.1 per cent, after slipping as much as 0.5 per cent in early trading.

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