Hong Kong--Hong Kong stocks ended 0.13 percent lower Thursday following hefty losses on Wall Street, but Shanghai resumed its latest rally on hopes for stimulus measures for the Chinese economy.
The benchmark Hang Seng Index slipped 31.15 points to 24,497.08 on turnover of HK$83.21 billion ($10.73 billion).
The index's retreat was in line with a regional sell-off as investors followed their US counterparts to the sidelines. New York's three main indexes tumbled after the Commerce Department announced a surprise fall in durable goods orders for February.
While the news will likely put back the Federal Reserve's timeline on when to raise interest rates, it was taken as a sign of weakness in the US economy and raising fears about the global outlook.
The Nasdaq plunged 2.37 percent, the Dow tumbled 1.62 percent and the S&P 500 gave up 1.46 percent.
In share trading Tencent lost 1.33 percent to HK$140.80, insurer China Life lost 1.07 percent to HK$32.30 and HSBC was flat at HK$67.35.
However, energy firms were boosted by a surge in oil prices as trouble-hit Yemen edges towards civil war, sparking fears of a conflagration in the crude-rich Middle East.
Sinopec rose 0.67 percent to HK$6.05, CNOOC gained 1.54 percent to HK$10.56 and PetroChina added 0.85 percent to HK$8.35.
In mainland China, the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.58 percent, or 21.37 points, to 3,682.10 on turnover of 619.5 billion yuan ($100.9 billion).
The Shenzhen Composite Index, which tracks stocks on China's second exchange, fell 1.52 percent, or 29.46 points, to 1,914.23 on turnover of 560.9 billion yuan.
"Investors chased heavyweight stocks in Shanghai today and abandoned small-cap stocks, which have risen too much lately," Haitong Securities analyst Zhang Qi told AFP.
The Shanghai market fell on Wednesday for the first time after a 10-session winning streak that saw it gain more than 12 percent and hit a near seven-year high.
AFP
