FX.co ★ Hong Kong Stocks Fall Slightly to Start the Week

Shares in Hong Kong decreased by 73 points, equivalent to a 0.3% decline, reaching 23,528 during Monday's morning trading session. This movement reversed the modest gains observed in the previous session. The downturn was largely driven by declines in consumer and technology stocks, as market sentiment weakened in anticipation of China's forthcoming industrial profit data for the first four months of 2025, which is expected to be released on Tuesday. Contributing to the cautious atmosphere, recent data revealed that Hong Kong's annual inflation rate rose to a three-month peak of 2.0% in April, with the core Consumer Price Index (CPI) increasing to 1.3% from the prior 1.0%. However, these losses were somewhat mitigated by a rally in U.S. futures, following President Trump's decision to delay the imposition of potential tariffs on the European Union, extending the negotiation deadline to July 9. In other developments, Financial Secretary Paul Chan announced that Hong Kong's IPO fundraising has already surpassed HKD 76 billion this year, a significant increase—sevenfold—compared to the previous year, and nearly 90% of the total recorded in 2024. Among the early notable decliners were Meituan, down by 6.2%, Horizon Robotics, which fell by 5.5%, as well as Xiaomi and Tencent, which declined by 2.5% and 1.5%, respectively. Additionally, Jiangsu Hengrui Pharma experienced a 2.1% decrease following its strong market debut last Friday.