Hong Kong stocks rebound with Asian peers as “two sessions” opens in China
South Korea’s Kospi leads Asia-Pacific gains, jumping nearly 10 per cent to recover nearly all of its record 12 per cent drop
The Hang Seng Index closed 0.3 per cent higher at 25,321.34. The Hang Seng Tech Index slipped 0.7 per cent. On the mainland, the CSI 300 Index climbed 1 per cent and the Shanghai Composite Index added 0.6 per cent.
South Korea’s Kospi led the gains in the Asia-Pacific region, surging 9.6 per cent and nearly wiping out a record 12 per cent loss a day earlier. Japan’s Nikkei 225 climbed 1.9 per cent and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.4 per cent.
US stocks rebounded overnight after key data from the US showed that the services industry expanded at the fastest pace since mid-2022, with employers adding more jobs than expected, while a price index dropped to a one-year low. That temporarily eased the sell-offs spurred by the jitters about inflation after the US-Israeli assault on Iran.
At the opening session of China’s National People’s Congress, policymakers set the gross domestic product (GDP) target for 2026 between 4.5 and 5 per cent, the lowest in decades. The government report, which was delivered by Premier Li Qiang at the meeting to delegates for review, set the fiscal deficit at 4 per cent, while prioritising technological self-reliance and downplaying the importance of the property market.