Hong Kong Shares May Extend Losing Streak

(RTTNews) - The Hong Kong stock market has finished lower in two straight sessions, retreating more than 310 points or 1.7 percent along the way. The Hang Seng Index now sits just beneath the 19,450-point plateau and it may extend its losses again on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is negative on renewed concerns about the outlook for interest rates. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were down and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.

The Hang Seng finished sharply lower on Tuesday as the properties, oil companies and technology stocks ended mostly in the red.

For the day, the index slumped 240.71 points or 1.22 percent to finish at 19,447.58 after trading between 19,252.61 and 19,668.65.

Among the actives, Alibaba Group skidded 0.91 percent, while Alibaba Health Info climbed 1.25 percent, ANTA Sports spiked 1.93 percent, China Mengniu Dairy advanced 0.86 percent, CITIC shed 0.70 percent, CNOOC dropped 0.84 percent, CSPC Pharmaceutical slumped 1.10 percent, Galaxy Entertainment soared 2.75 percent, Haier Smart Home rallied 1.35 percent, Hang Lung Properties perked 0.17 percent, Henderson Land tumbled 1.51 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas sank 0.82 percent, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China collected 0.41 percent, JD.com lost 0.52 percent, Lenovo retreated 1.42 percent, Li Auto tanked 1,59 percent, Li Ning surged 2.91 percent, Meituan declined 1.33 percent, New World Development fell 0.41 percent, Nongfu Spring gained 0.46 percent, Techtronic Industries added 0.69 percent, Xiaomi Corporation plummeted 5.92 percent, WuXi Biologics plunged 2.53 percent and China Life Insurance and China Resources Land were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is bleak as the major averages opened slightly higher on Tuesday but quickly turned lower and finished deep in the red.

The Dow stumbled 178.20 points or 0.42 percent to finish at 42,528.36, while the NASDAQ plummeted 375.30 points or 1.89 percent to close at 19,489.68 and the S&P 500 sank 66.35 points or 1.11 percent to end at 5,909.03.

The sharp pullback by stocks came amid a notable increase by treasury yields, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year note surging to its highest closing level in eight months.

The jump by treasury yields, which led to concerns about the outlook for interest rates, came following the release of some upbeat U.S. economic data.

The Institute for Supply Management said U.S. service sector activity increased more than expected in December. The report also said the prices index surged to a one-year high, leading to concerns that inflation will remain sticky. Also, the Labor Department said job openings in the U.S. unexpectedly increased in November.

Oil prices climbed higher Tuesday amid a possible supply shortage after China decided to reject imports from Iran and Russia, while unusually cold weather in the U.S. also contributed to the rise in oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for February closed up $0.69 or 0.94 percent at $74.25 a barrel.