Hong Kong Shares Tipped To Open In The Red

(RTTNews) - The Hong Kong stock market bounced higher again on Monday, one session after ending the four-day winning streak in which it had rallied more than 725 points or 2.8 percent. The Hang Seng now sits just above the 26,030-point plateau and it's expected to turn lower again on Tuesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is soft, with profit taking expected after recent strength. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.

The Hang Seng finished modestly higher on Monday as the financial shares, property stocks and technology companies were mostly in the green.

For the day, the index improved 174.37 points or 0.67 percent to finish at 26,033.26 after trading between 25,913.98 and 26,179.72.

Among the actives, Alibaba Group surged 2.24 percent, while Alibaba Health Info skidded 1.08 percent, ANTA Sports sank 0.88 percent, China Life Insurance improved 0.97 percent, China Mengniu Dairy vaulted 1.47 percent, China Resources Land jumped 1.59 percent, CITIC fell 0.25 percent, CNOOC expanded 1.23 percent, CSPC Pharmaceutical shed 0.76 percent, Galaxy Entertainment dropped 0.94 percent, Haier Smart Home gathered 0.45 percent, Hang Lung Properties perked 0.22 percent, Henderson Land climbed 1.16 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas gained 0.55 percent, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China collected 0.31 percent, JD.com rose 0.52 percent, Lenovo added 0.62 percent, Li Auto tanked 2.29 percent, Li Ning increased 0.69 percent, Meituan stumbled 2.88 percent, New World Development lost 0.58 percent, Nongfu Spring advanced 1.07 percent, Techtronic Industries eased 0.11 percent, Xiaomi Corporation slumped 1.76 percent and WuXi Biologics spiked 1.80 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is weak as the major averages opened lower on Monday and remained in the red throughout the trading day.

The Dow tumbled 427.09 points or 0.90 percent to finish at 47,289.33, while the NASDAQ sank 89.76 points or 0.38 percent to close at 23,275.92 and the S&P 500 lost 36.46 points or 0.53 percent to end at 6,812.63.

The weakness on Wall Street came as traders looked to cash in on last week's rally, which saw the major averages stage a significant recovery from the sharp pullback seen in November.

The major averages had closed higher for five consecutive sessions last week, clawing their way back toward record highs.

Stocks had recently benefited from renewed optimism about the outlook for interest rates following dovish comments from leading Federal Reserve officials. However, the release of key U.S. economic data in the coming days could impact Fed officials' thinking.

Crude oil prices surged on Monday as the U.S. dollar came under pressure amid rate cut expectations. West Texas Intermediate crude for January delivery was up $0.75 or 1.28 percent at $59.30 per barrel.