Hong Kong Shares Have A Green Light For Thursday

The Hong Kong stock market on Wednesday wrote a finish to the two-day winning streak in which it had gathered more than 450 points or 2 percent. The Hang Seng Index now sits just above the 23,300-point plateau although it's expected to regain its footing on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on optimism for reopening economies and the possibility of further stimulus. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses are tipped to open in similar fashion.

The Hang Seng finished modestly lower on Wednesday following mixed performances from the casinos, insurance companies and properties.

For the day, the index shed 83.30 points or 0.36 percent to finish at 23,301.36 after trading between 23,134.61 and 23,515.14.

Among the actives, CSPC Pharmaceutical skyrocketed 6.68 percent, while Power Assets plummeted 3.16 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas plunged 2.28 percent, Sands China surged 2.16 percent, China Mengniu Dairy tanked 2.06 percent, BOC Hong Kong tumbled 2.03 percent, Tencent Holdings surrendered 1.27 percent, New World Development skidded 1.22 percent, China Life Insurance jumped 1.11 percent, WH Group retreated 0.93 percent, China Mobile declined 0.91 percent, AAC Technologies sank 0.85 percent, CITIC climbed 0.69 percent, CNOOC advanced 0.68 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) added 0.57 percent, Galaxy Entertainment dropped 0.56 percent, AIA Group shed 0.39 percent, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China gained 0.20 percent and Ping An Insurance fell 0.13 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is firm as stocks moved mostly higher on Wednesday and ended solidly in the green to hit multi-month closing highs.

The Dow surged 553.16 points or 2.21 percent to finish at 25,548.27, while the NASDAQ added 72.14 points or 0.77 percent to end at 9,412.36 and the S&P 500 gained 44.36 points or 1.48 percent to close at 3,036.13.

The strength on Wall Street came as traders continued to express optimism about a quick economic recovery as the country reopens following the coronavirus lockdown.

Adding to the positive sentiment was news that the European Commission plan to launch a massive recovery fund for the euro region to help limit the damage inflicted by the coronavirus pandemic.

Crude oil prices drifted lower on Wednesday as worries about energy demand outlook resurfaced due to rising tensions between the U.S. and China. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for July sank $1.54 or 4.5 percent at $32.81 a barrel.