Hong Kong Bourse May Add To Its Winnings On Monday

(RTTNews) - The Hong Kong stock market on Friday ended the two-day slide in which it had given up more than 650 points or 2.4 percent. The Hang Seng Index now sits just above the 26,230-point plateau and it may extend its gains on Monday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on an improved outlook for interest rates. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses are expected to follow that lead.

The Hang Seng finished modestly higher on Friday following gains from the financial shares, property stocks and technology companies.

For the day, the index gained 82.48 points or 0.32 percent to finish at 26,231.79 after trading between 26,114.41 and 26,299.32.

Among the actives, Alibaba Group soared 2.73 percent, while Alibaba Health Info skyrocketed 4.72 percent, ANTA Sports declined 1.47 percent, China Life Insurance and Haier Smart Home both expanded 1.09 percent, China Mengniu Dairy tanked 2.41 percent, China Resources Land tumbled 1.35 percent, CITIC perked 0.08 percent, CNOOC strengthened 1.26 percent, CSPC Pharmaceutical climbed 0.99 percent, Galaxy Entertainment vaulted 1.87 percent, Hang Lung Properties surged 3.97 percent, Henderson Land advanced 0.89 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas slumped 0.98 percent, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China collected 0.49 percent, JD.com spiked 2.60 percent, Lenovo accelerated 2.39 percent, Li Auto contracted 1.36 percent, Li Ning added 0.56 percent, Meituan stumbled 2.48 percent, New World Development gained 0.40 percent, Nongfu Spring retreated 1.52 percent, Techtronic Industries rallied 2.01 percent, Xiaomi Corporation sank 0.53 percent and WuXi Biologics jumped 1.70 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is positive as the major averages opened higher on Friday and remained in the green throughout the trading day, ending near session highs.

The Dow jumped 237.96 points or 0.48 percent to finish at a record 49,504.07, while the NASDAQ rallied 191.33 points or 0.81 percent to end at 23,671.35 and the S&P 500 added 44.82 points or 0.65 percent to close at 6,966.28, also a record.

For the week, the Dow surged 2.3 percent, the NASDAQ jumped 1.9 percent and the S&P climbed 1.6 percent.

The strength on Wall Street reflected a positive reaction to the Labor Department's closely watched report on employment in December. With the report showing employment increased less than expected in December, the data has led to optimism about the outlook for interest rates.

While the Federal Reserve is still widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged at its next meeting later this month, the report has increased confidence in further rate cuts later this year.

Crude oil prices surged on Friday amid near-term supply concerns due to ongoing geopolitical tensions, a decline in U.S. inventories, and OPEC's decision to pause output increases. West Texas Intermediate crude for February delivery was up $1.58 or 2.74 percent at $59.34 per barrel.