06/29/2022 01:17am EDT
SHANGHAI(Reuters) - China and Hong Kong stocks slid on Wednesday as investors locked in profits after a strong recent rebound, with Wall Street's overnight sell-off also overshadowing optimism from easing COVID-19 restrictions in the country.
** Both China's blue-chip index CSI300 and the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.8% by the lunch break. Both indices had bounced nearly 20% from April 27 lows.
** Hong Kong's benchmark index Hang Seng lost 1.6%. The Hang Seng Tech Index slumped 3%, after touching near four-month highs during the previous session.
** The strong rebound recently was triggered by hopes that Beijing would gradually ease COVID-19 curbs to revive a struggling economy.
** On Wednesday, Shanghai, which came out of a two-month coronavirus lockdown on June 1, officially resumes dining-in, with the city continuing to ease restrictions.
** China on Tuesday also halved mandatory centralized quarantine time for inbound travellers to seven days, while Hong Kong's incoming Chief Executive John Lee said further relaxation of mandatory quarantine time for inbound travellers into the former British colony is under consideration.
** "These latest developments will help rebuild investor confidence that economic growth is being prioritized on an ongoing basis," Morgan Stanley wrote on Wednesday.
** However, Premier Li Keqiang cautioned that although China's economy has recovered to some extent, its foundation is not solid.
** Sentiment on Wednesday was also dented by Wall Street's weakness and fresh geopolitical tensions.
** U.S. President Joe Biden's administration added five companies in China to a trade blacklist on Tuesday for allegedly supporting Russia's military and defense industrial base.
** "Geopolitical tensions between China and other major economics, especially the U.S. and its allies, will likely remain elevated," rating agency Moody's wrote on Wednesday.
** Most sectors fell in China and Hong Kong. China's property shares jumped more than 5%, after Vanke Chairman Yu Liang said the real estate market has bottomed out. (Reporting by Shanghai Newsroom; editing by Uttaresh.V)
Sumber : Reuters
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