Hong Kong Shares May Stop The Bleeding On Tuesday

(RTTNews) - The Hong Kong stock market has tracked lower in three straight sessions, dropping almost 1,650 points or 6.5 percent along the way. The Hang Seng Index now rests just above the 24,380-point plateau and it's tipped to open in the green on Tuesday. The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat as tensions in the Middle East take a slight breather. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were up and the Asian markets are expected to follow the latter lead. The Hang Seng finished sharply lower on Monday with damage across the board, especially among the technology stocks, financial shares and properties. For the day, the index cratered 894.85 points or 3.54 percent to finish at 24,382.47 after trading between 24,203.54 and 24,789.14. Among the actives, Alibaba Group lost 3.23 percent, while Alibaba Health Info skidded 3.49 percent, ANTA Sports gave up 1.57 percent, China Life Insurance plummeted 7.60 percent, China Mengniu Dairy tanked 4.32 percent, China Resources Land slipped 3.00 percent, CITIC was down 2.43 percent, CNOOC added 0.39 percent, CSPC Pharmaceutical cratered 6.02 percent, Galaxy Entertainment contracted 3.63 percent, Haier Smart Home and Lenovo both tumbled 4.11 percent, Hang Lung Properties crashed 4.39 percent, Henderson Land declined 3.66 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas slumped 3.54 percent, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China dropped 3.48 percent, JD.com fell 3.22 percent, Li Auto dipped 2.99 percent, Li Ning slid 1.68 percent, Meituan shed 3.28 percent, New World Development plunged 6.32 percent, Nongfu Spring retreated 3.75 percent, Techtronic Industries stumbled 4.29 percent, Xiaomi Corporation sank 3.43 percent and WuXi Biologics surrendered 4.20 percent.

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

The Dow surged 631.00 points or 1.38 percent to finish at 46,208.47, while the NASDAQ spiked 299.15 points or 1.38 percent to close at 21,946.76 and the S&P 500 rallied 74.52 points or 1.15 percent to end at 6,581.00.

The early rally on Wall Street came reaction to President Donald Trump backing down from his threats to "obliterate" Iran's power plants unless they fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

However, buying interest waned somewhat as the day progressed, as Iran's state-run media said the country's foreign ministry has denied negotiating with the U.S.

Crude oil prices plummeted on Monday after Trump's announcement that he ordered the U.S. forces to pause any planned attacks against Iran's power plants and energy infrastructure. West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery was down $10.21 or 10.39 percent at $88.02 per barrel.