Beijing: Trade tensions seem to meltdown as Chinese and Hong Kong markets rise with renewed optimism on Tuesday. The broad indices gained almost 1% as trade positivity swept in on the breath of life between China and the U.S.
The exuberance was spoiled mildly by the release of some weaker data from China's services sector, which expanded at the slowest pace for seven months owing to the high tariffs from the U.S.
The blue-chip CSI300 Index and Shanghai Composite Index, meanwhile, by midday, were both nicely placed with gains of near 1%, marking their best show in nearly a month.
The Hang Seng Index for Hong Kong, meanwhile, buoyed by quick gains in tech stocks, advanced 0.6% to a one-month high. The last few days saw investors enthusiastic about returning from holidays, in response to strengthening Asian currencies and on initial signs of a turn within the U.S. dollar assets.
This optimism was reinforced by President Trump's announcement that the U.S. was negotiating trade agreements with China and other nations very aggressively. These hints of cooling trade tensions became a boost for spirits in Asian markets.
Tech-heavy indices saw notable gains: the STAR 50 Index rose 1.4%, and the Beijing Stock Exchange 50 Index jumped nearly 3%. High-tech sectors like cloud computing, software, and big data performed strongly. Rare earth stocks also surged over 4%, driven by expectations of their strategic role in China’s ongoing geopolitical positioning.
In Hong Kong, financial, tourism, and shipping companies led the market higher, reflecting broad-based optimism amid global economic uncertainty.
[Source Credit: Business Recorder]
