Josephine Ma

My Take | What bullish sentiment in China’s stock markets confirms about Communist Party rule

Strong growth has been key to the party holding on to power, and it has again shown the ability to shift course to heed public opinion

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The Chinese national emblem and flags at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Recent weeks have signalled that Beijing has prioritised economic recovery and is willing to take more than incremental measures to achieve that goal. Photo: AP

Josephine Ma

Published: 8:38pm, 8 Oct 2024Updated: 9:04pm, 8 Oct 2024

After four long years, a bullish sentiment returned to the mainland and Hong Kong stock markets last month, riding on expectations that Beijing would roll out a stimulus package to revive the country’s sluggish economy.

The first interest rate cut in four years by the US Federal Reserve in late September also brought hope for more cuts and boosted market sentiment in the past two weeks.

The timing of the market rally was perfect, ahead of celebrations for the 75th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China last week.

The mainland market roared as it reopened after the National Day “golden week” holiday on Tuesday, although Hong Kong appeared to reverse some of the gains it made when the mainland market was closed for the week-long break.

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How long such rallies will last and whether there will be a return of the hoped-for bull market is difficult to say, with analysts pointing out that there were no fiscal stimulus measures mentioned in a press conference by national planners on Tuesday.