FX.co ★ Hong Kong Stocks Sink to 1-Month Low on Renewed U.S.-China Tensions

On Monday morning, Hong Kong share prices dropped sharply, losing 513 points, or close to 2%, closing at 25,776. This marked the sixth consecutive session of declines and hit the lowest level observed in a month. The market's negative sentiment followed the announcement by U.S. President Trump of a 100% tariff on all Chinese goods set to take effect on November 1. This move was in response to China's new export restrictions on rare earth minerals. Although Trump later hinted at the possibility of reaching a trade agreement, investors remained wary after Beijing signaled its preparedness for a protracted dispute. The market's caution was further heightened in anticipation of China's trade data for September, especially after disappointing export and import figures for August. A broad-based decline affected all sectors, with losses ranging from 1% to 2%, as Chinese markets experienced profit-taking at near decade highs. Technology, consumer, and financial stocks each fell approximately 2%, while real estate shares declined by 1.5%. Notable losers included Lenovo, dropping 4.6%, Wuxi Biologics, down 4.4%, AIA, which decreased by 3.9%, and Xiaomi, down 3.1%. In contrast, Zijin Mining surged by 5.8%, with SMIC gaining 1.6% and Want Want China edging up by 0.6%.