- Unrest continues to roil stocks, as police accuse ‘rioters’ of firing arrows at them; traffic again crippled
- China’s industrial production, retail sales both trail analysts’ estimates
Hong Kong's stocks fell for a second straight day, with the benchmark gauge heading for its biggest weekly decline in three months, as the protests extended into a fourth consecutive work day, crippling public commuting and leading to the cancellation of school classes. Meanwhile, Internet giant Tencent missed earnings.
The Hang Seng Index retreated 0.9 per cent, or 247.77 points, to 26,323.69 at the close on Thursday. The gauge has fallen 4.8 per cent so far this week, putting it on track for the biggest loss for a five-day period since August, as the civic upheaval shows no sign of ending.
While university campuses, which have recently become battlefields between the police and the protesters, largely remained quiet on Wednesday night, a 70-year man was in a critical condition after being hit by a thrown brick as he cleared road blocks. Protesters continued to deploy barricades in the city's financial districts on Thursday, bringing the traffic in Central and Connaught Road to a virtual standstill.
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The University of Hong Kong said it has suspended all classes on its main campus for the rest of the semester, joining Polytechnic University, Baptist University, and the University of Science and Technology that made similar announcements earlier.
Further fuelling the sell-off was China's poor October data. Industrial production and retail sales both trailed analysts' estimates, while growth in fixed-asset investment slipped to the slowest pace since records began in November 1999.
"The protests, especially in Central every day, have a huge impact on investors' sentiment and mood, making people panic," said Francis Lun Sheung-nim, chief executive of GEO Securities.
"As the unrest keeps going on, the Hong Kong stock market doesn't have hope on protests ending."
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China's Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.2 per cent to 2,909.87, as traders flocked to technology stocks as a haven and on expectations the government will roll out more measures to stabilise growth.
Tencent, the Chinese social media behemoth, slid 2.3 per cent to HK$319.80. Third-quarter profit attributable to shareholders fell 13 per cent from a year earlier to 20.4 billion yuan (US$2.9 billion), the company said after the market closed on Wednesday. That was below the 23.5 billion yuan average from analysts' estimates compiled by Bloomberg.
361 Degrees International slumped 16 per cent to HK$1.35, the biggest drop since September 2017, after the Chinese sportswear maker said its auditor KPMG quit because the two parties could not reach a consensus on the audit service fee.
Stocks Blog: Tencent falls on results miss; Wharf REIC declines as protests continue
Cathay Pacific Airways shed 0.8 per cent to HK$9.91 after the carrier said Cathay Dragon's traffic in October decreased 7.1 per cent from a year ago.
On the mainland, Zhejiang Chengbang Landscape led infrastructure-linked companies higher after the State Council said on Wednesday night that it will lower the capital requirement ratios for some projects.
The minimum capital requirement ratio for ports and shipping projects will be cut to 20 per cent from 25 per cent, and equity-backed financing can be used to fund construction of infrastructure projects, according to the cabinet.
Zhejiang Chengbang, a landscape construction company, surged 5.7 per cent to 9.70 yuan. Xinjiang Beixin Road and Bridge Group climbed 5.4 per cent to 5.83 yuan and China Design Group added 2.3 per cent to 10.18 yuan.
Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology dropped 2.5 per cent to 33.37 yuan in Shenzhen after the surveillance camera maker said two of its board directors were under regulatory probes for allegedly violating rules of information disclosures.
Additional reporting by Snow Xia.
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