More Pain Predicted For Hong Kong Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The Hong Kong stock market has alternated between positive and negative finishes through the last four sessions since the end of the four-day losing streak in which it had surrendered more than 800 points or 4 percent. The Hang Seng Index now sits just beneath the 20,530-point plateau and it's expected to take further damage on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets suggests consolidation on geopolitical concerns and fears over the outlook for interest rates. The European and U.S. markets were solidly lower and the Asian bourses are tipped to follow suit.

The Hang Seng finished sharply lower on Tuesday following losses from the technology stocks and a mixed performance from the financials and properties.

For the day, the index plummeted 357.47 points or 1.71 percent to finish at 20,529.49 after trading between 20,503.05 and 20,941.30.

Among the actives, Alibaba Group plunged 4.23 percent, while Alibaba Health Info surrendered 3.78 percent, ANTA Sports dropped 1.60 percent, China Life Insurance shed 0.57 percent, China Mengniu Dairy sank 1.49 percent, China Resources Land spiked 2.17 percent, CITIC climbed 0.99 percent, CNOOC rallied 2.11 percent, Country Garden lost 0.48 percent, CSPC Pharmaceutical fell 0.46 percent, Galaxy Entertainment slid 0.19 percent, Hang Lung Properties added 0.37 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas jumped 1.08 percent, JD.com plummeted 8.53 percent, Lenovo slumped 2.11 percent, Li Ning declined 2.48 percent, Meituan tumbled 4.12 percent, New World Development skidded 1.82 percent, Techtronic Industries retreated 2.26 percent, Xiaomi Corporation retreated 2.18 percent, WuXi Biologics tanked 4.19 percent and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and Henderson Land were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is broadly negative as the major averages opened lower on Tuesday and saw the losses accelerate as the day progressed, ending near session lows.

The Dow plummeted 697.10 points or 2.06 percent to finish at 33,129.59, while the NASDAQ plunged 294.97 points or 2.50 percent to close at 11,492.30 and the S&P 500 tumbled 81.75 points or 2.00 percent to end at 3,997.34.

The sell-off on Wall Street reflected ongoing concerns about the outlook for interest rates amid a spike in treasury yields. The benchmark 10-year yield more than offset the dip seen last Friday, reaching its highest closing level in three months.

Recent economic data has also led to worries the Federal Reserve may raise rates higher than expected and keep them elevated for an extended period. Later today, the Fed will release minutes of its latest monetary policy meeting, which could shed some light on the outlook for interest rates.

Geopolitical concerns also weighed after Russian President Vladimir Putin said he is suspending Russia's participation in a nuclear arms treaty with the U.S. The announcement by Putin comes after U.S. President Joe Biden made a surprise visit to Ukraine's capital Kyiv on Monday.

Crude oil prices were volatile on Tuesday as traders weighed the impact of higher U.S. interest rates against optimism about increased demand from China. West Texas Intermediate for March delivery dipped $0.16 or 0.2 percent to $76.16 a barrel, while crude for April delivery eased $0.19 or 0.3 percent to $76.29 a barrel.

Closer to home, Hong Kong will see Q4 data for gross domestic product later today, with forecasts calling for a flat quarterly reading and a 4.2 percent annual decline. That follows declines of 2.6 percent on quarter and 4.6 percent on year in the previous three months.