Hong Kong Stock Market Has Solid Lead For Thursday's Trade

(RTTNews) - The Hong Kong stock market has moved higher in four straight sessions, gathering almost 1,160 points or 4.6 percent in that span. The Hang Seng Index now sits just beneath the 25,540-point plateau and it's expected to open higher again on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on optimism for trade deals. The European and U.S. markets were solidly higher and the Asian bourses are expected to follow that lead.

The Hang Seng finished sharply higher again on Wednesday following gains from the financial shares, insurance companies, technology stocks and properties.

For the day, the index rallied 408.04 points or 1.62 percent to finish at the daily high of 25,538.07 after trading as low as 25,228.01.

Among the actives, Alibaba Group strengthened 2.46 percent, while Alibaba Health Info accelerated 3.03 percent, ANTA Sports advanced 1.66 percent, China Life Insurance surged 3.34 percent, China Mengniu Dairy expanded 2.09 percent, China Resources Land increased 1.37 percent, CITIC skyrocketed 3.36 percent, CNOOC gathered 0.64 percent, CSPC Pharmaceutical stumbled 2.39 percent, ENN Energy dropped 1.08 percent, Galaxy Entertainment lost 0.41 percent, Haier Smart Home spiked 3.15 percent, Hang Lung Properties fell 0.40 percent, Henderson Land climbed 1.69 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas added 1.01 percent, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China collected 1.15 percent, JD.com rallied 2.76 percent, Lenovo improved 1.39 percent, Li Auto perked 0.58 percent, Li Ning was up 0.24 percent, Meituan soared 3.26 percent, New World Development picked up 0.17 percent, Nongfu Spring sank 0.55 percent, Techtronic Industries gained 0.90 percent, Xiaomi Corporation rose 0.78 percent and WuXi Biologics jumped 2.68 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is strong as the major averages opened with modest gains on Wednesday but continued to climb as the day progressed, ending at session highs.

The Dow surged 507.85 points or 1.14 percent to finish at 45,010.29, while the NASDAQ jumped 127.33 points or 0.61 percent to close at a record 21,020.02 and the S&P 500 gained 49.29 points or 0.78 percent to end at 6,358.91, also a record.

The strength on Wall Street came after President Donald Trump announced trade deals with Japan and the Philippines.

The announcement of these trade deals spurred expectations of further trade agreements as the Aug. 1 deadline nears.

On the U.S. economic front, a report released by the National Association of Realtors showed existing home sales in the U.S. pulled back by more than expected in the month of June.

Crude oil prices dipped slightly on Wednesday as uncertainty persists in U.S. trade talks ahead of the deadline. West Texas Intermediate crude for September delivery eased $0.06 to $65.25 per barrel.