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In the last four sessions, the Hong Kong stock market has seen a steady rise, gaining nearly 1,100 points or a 6.5% increase. The Hang Seng Index currently stands slightly above the 17,280-point mark. However, it is expected that investors may look to secure their profits on Friday.
Internationally, Asian markets are expected to be influenced by a concern over interest rate forecasts. The European markets showed variable performance, while markets in the U.S. observed a downturn, a trend likely to be followed by the Asian markets.
The Hang Seng finished with modest gains on Thursday, driven by the financial sector and variable performances from the real estate and tech sectors. The index grew by 83.27 points or 0.48% to settle at 17,284.54 after trading between 17,109.57 and 17,438.83.
Active performance varied across individual companies. Alibaba Group saw a rise of 0.69%, while ANTA Sports fell by 0.39%. Both China Life Insurance and CLP Holdings improved by 0.80%, whereas China Mengniu Dairy saw a decrease of 1.25%.
Trading on Wall Street provided a negative lead as major averages opened lower on Thursday and stayed in the red for the remainder of the day. The Dow Jones fell 375.12 points or 0.98% to end at 38,085.80, NASDAQ went down 100.99 points or 0.64% to close at 15,611.76, and the S&P 500 dropped 23.21 points or 0.46% to finish at 5,048.42.
Earnings reports from Meta Platforms and tech giant IBM Corp. initiated an early sell-off on Wall Street. In terms of economic news, a report by the Commerce Department indicated lower than anticipated growth in the U.S. economy for the first quarter of 2024 which, along with higher than expected personal consumption expenditures, upset the probability of a forthcoming interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve.
Despite the U.S.'s slower GDP growth for the first quarter, crude oil futures saw an increase on Thursday. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for June closed up by $0.76 or roughly 0.92% at $83.57 a barrel.