Hang Seng Index May Open Under Pressure

(RTTNews) - The Hong Kong stock market on Tuesday ended the two-day losing streak in which it had stumbled more than 360 points or 2 percent. The Hang Seng Index now rests just above the 18,780-point plateau although it's expected to open lower again on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is negative ahead of the FOMC's rate decision later today. The European and U.S. markets finished firmly in the red and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.

The Hang Seng finished sharply higher on Tuesday following gains from the technology stocks, properties and casinos.

For the day, the index climbed 215.45 points or 1.16 percent to finish at 18,781.42 after trading between 18,685.46 and 18,861.47.

Among the actives, Alibaba Group spiked 2.99 percent, while Alibaba Health Info and New World Development both strengthened 1.53 percent, ANTA Sports accelerated 2.50 percent, China Life Insurance slipped 0.18 percent, China Mengniu Dairy added 0.59 percent, China Resources Land gained 0.45 percent, CITIC advanced 1.13 percent, CNOOC improved 0.80 percent, Country Garden eased 0.14 percent, CSPC Pharmaceutical climbed 1.50 percent, Galaxy Entertainment skyrocketed 4.28 percent, Hang Lung Properties was up 0.30 percent, Henderson Land perked 0.40 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas gathered 0.68 percent, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China fell 0.26 percent, JD.com soared 3.50 percent, Lenovo collected 0.65 percent, Li Ning rallied 2.41 percent, Longfor increased 0.76 percent, Meituan jumped 1.89 percent, Techtronic Industries surged 3.70 percent, Xiaomi Corporation added 0.20 percent, WuXi Biologics rose 0.41 percent and China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is soft as the major averages opened in the red on Tuesday and held their negative bias throughout the session.

The Dow plunged 313.45 points or 1.01 percent to finish at 30,706.23, while the NASDAQ sank 109.97 points or 0.95 percent to end at 11,425.05 and the S&P 500 tumbled 43.96 points or 1.13 percent to close at 3,855.93.

The weakness on Wall Street came as traders were jittery ahead of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy decision later today. The Fed is widely expected to raise interest rates by another 75 basis points, although some see an outside chance for a 100-point rate hike.

Treasury yields saw further upside ahead of the Fed announcement, with the yield on the benchmark ten-year note jumping to a new 11-year high.

In economic news, the Commerce Department reported an unexpected spike in new residential construction in the U.S. in August, although the report also showed a steeper than expected slump in building permits.

Crude oil prices fell sharply on Tuesday amid concerns about interest rate hikes and worries about the outlook for energy demand. West Texas Intermediate Crude futures for October ended lower by $1.28 or 1.5 percent at $84.45 a barrel on expiration day.