On Thursday, the Hang Seng surged by 417 points, or 2.1%, closing at 20,682, marking its third consecutive daily increase. This came as traders largely dismissed the recent tariff hike imposed by Washington on Chinese goods, elevating rates from 104% to 125%, in anticipation that Beijing would implement measures to shield the economy from these increased levies. Concurrently, China issued a White Paper indicating a readiness to engage in dialogue with the U.S. to mitigate the ongoing trade war, while also committing to take definitive actions to protect its economic interests.
The market sentiment was further buoyed by reports of high-level discussions among Chinese leaders concerning new economic support strategies, complemented by regulators examining additional measures to stabilize markets. Significantly contributing to the positive outlook, March's consumer prices decreased by a mere 0.1% year-over-year, a marked improvement over February's 0.7% decline, and surpassing expectations of a slight increase.
All market sectors recorded gains, supported by a record mainland investment of HKD 35.5 billion in Hong Kong stocks through the Stock Connect on Wednesday. The rally was led by technology and electric vehicle stocks, with notable advances from companies such as Kuaishou, which rose by 4.7%, Trip.com with a 4.0% increase, Li Auto surging by 5.6%, and Geely climbing by 4.9%.
