HK stocks slips as regional retreat from tech deepens
Asian markets were mostly lower on Thursday with tech firms back under pressure after a four-day rebound amid lingering AI worries. In Hong Kong, the benchmark Hang Seng Index ended lower by 385 points, or 1.5 percent, at 25,530 on turnover of HK$255.23 billion The tech index dropped 112 points, or 2.3 percent, to 4,820 while the China enterprises index fell 105 points, or 1.2 percent, to 8,498.…
Asian markets dipped on Thursday with technology companies facing renewed pressure due to ongoing concerns surrounding artificial intelligence. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index closed 385 points, or 1.5 percent, lower at 25,530 following a turnover of HK$255.23 billion. The technology index fell 112 points, or 2.3 percent, to 4,820 on a trading volume of HK$255.23 billion.
The China Enterprises Index also declined 105 points, or 1.2 percent, to 8,498, with a turnover of HK$255.23 billion. Mainland China's Shanghai Composite Index managed a modest gain of 21 points, or 0.57 percent, at 3,900 on a turnover of 1.17 trillion yuan. The Shenzhen Component Index decreased by 34 points, or 0.24 percent, to 14,110 on a turnover of 1.36 trillion yuan, while the ChiNext Index slipped 19 points, or 0.55 percent, on a turnover of 657.9 billion yuan.
Investors had experienced a short-lived rally since Friday, following a month-long decline in tech stocks that resulted in billions of dollars of losses due to worries about excessive investments in AI. The recovery was initially sparked by Seoul's strong performance, which rose nearly 18 percent at week's end. Similarly, chip manufacturers SK Hynix and Samsung experienced a surge of over 25 percent.
This positive momentum seemed to encourage traders to return to bargain-priced stocks. However, the rally seemed to fizzle out on Thursday as technology stocks retreated on Wall Street and disappointing earnings from US giants SanDisk and Western Digital reignited concerns over the profitability of AI investments. In Tokyo, the Nikkei Index experienced a slight decline of just over 2 percent before closing down 617 points, or 0.93 percent, at 65,683 with 56 of the 225 tech components in the benchmark experiencing losses.
The broader Topix Index fell by nearly 10 points, or 0.24 percent, to 4,055. Seoul's Kospi Index ended the day down 301 points, or 4.58 percent, at 6,296 following the erasure of most of the gains from the previous two sessions, as AI-linked volatility significantly impacted the tech-heavy benchmark.
Written by urgent.news from RTHK News - Finance's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
