Hong Kong Shares May Reverse Thursday's Losses

(RTTNews) - The Hong Kong stock market on Thursday ended the four-day winning streak in which it had rallied almost 850 points or 3.3 percent. The Hang Seng Index now sits just beneath the 26,925-point plateau although it may tick higher again on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is cautiously optimistic, although any upside is likely to be capped by profit taking and slumping oil prices. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were up and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The Hang Seng finished modestly lower on Thursday following mixed performances from the financial shares, property stocks and technology companies.

For the day, the index lost 76.19 points or 0.28 percent to finish at 26,923.62 after trading between 26,808.35 and 27,206.84.

Among the actives, Alibaba Group stumbled 2.60 percent, while Alibaba Health Info plummeted 7.84 percent, ANTA Sports expanded 0.74 percent, China Life Insurance plunged 2.87 percent, China Mengniu Dairy vaulted 1.59 percent, China Resources Land strengthened 1.51 percent, CITIC slumped 1.32 percent, CNOOC surged 2.49 percent, CSPC Pharmaceutical fell 0.10 percent, Galaxy Entertainment jumped 1.65 percent, Haier Smart Home eased 0.08 percent, Hang Lung Properties spiked 1.74 percent, Henderson Land soared 1.80 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas rose 0.42 percent, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China rallied 1.60 percent, JD.com and Meituan both sank 0.69 percent, Lenovo gathered 0.22 percent, Li Auto gained 0.55 percent, Li Ning advanced 0.93 percent, New World Development skyrocketed 9.84 percent, Nongfu Spring added 0.69 percent, Techtronic Industries dropped 1.05 percent, Xiaomi Corporation was up 0.21 percent and WuXi Biologics perked 0.05 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is positive as the major averages opened higher on Thursday and remained in the green throughout the trading day.

The Dow jumped 292.81 points or 0.60 percent to finish at 49,442.44, while the NASDAQ added 58.27 points or 0.25 percent to close at 23,530.02 and the S&P 500 rose 17.87 points or 0.26 percent to end at 6,944.47.

The early strength on Wall Street reflected a positive reaction to earnings news from Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM), with the chipmaker surging by 4.4 percent.

Taiwan Semiconductor jumped after reporting a sharp increase in fourth quarter profits and announced larger-than-expected capital spending plans, contributing to renewed confidence in the artificial intelligence trade.

Positive sentiment may also have been generated by a Labor Department report showing first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly dipped last week.

Crude oil prices plummeted on Thursday as the potential for a U.S.-Iran confrontation diminished for the time being. West Texas Intermediate crude for February delivery was down $2.83 or 4.56 percent at $59.19 per barrel.