The Hong Kong stock market experienced a downturn on Friday, reversing the positive trend from the previous session in which it had recovered nearly 180 points, or 1 percent, over a two-day drop. The Hang Seng Index currently hovers just above the 17,610-point mark, with expectations for a rebound on Monday.
The global forecast for Asian markets is optimistic, buoyed by positive sentiments surrounding interest rate outlooks. Both European and U.S. markets saw gains, which suggests a possible upward trend for Asian bourses as well.
On Friday, the Hang Seng Index closed slightly lower, as technology stocks saw losses that were partly offset by gains in financials and a mixed performance in the property sector. Specifically, the index slipped by 28.90 points, or 0.16 percent, to settle at 17,612.10, after fluctuating between 17,493.08 and 17,635.70 throughout the day.
Among the active stocks, Alibaba Group rose by 1.22 percent, whereas Alibaba Health Information plummeted 3.95 percent. ANTA Sports eased by 0.07 percent, while China Life Insurance surged by 2.06 percent. China Mengniu Dairy slid 1.14 percent, and China Resources Land decreased by 0.92 percent. CITIC saw a minor rise of 0.13 percent, and CNOOC advanced by 0.99 percent. CSPC Pharmaceutical fell 2.88 percent, and Galaxy Entertainment dropped 1.12 percent. Haier Smart Home advanced 1.27 percent, Hang Lung Properties decreased 1.24 percent, and Henderson Land added 0.91 percent. Meanwhile, Hong Kong & China Gas declined 0.32 percent. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China gained 0.85 percent, JD.com dipped 0.09 percent, Lenovo plunged 2.93 percent, Li Auto increased by 0.24 percent, Li Ning spiked 2.15 percent, Meituan retreated 1.38 percent, New World Development lost 0.82 percent, Techtronic Industries sank 1.04 percent, Xiaomi Corporation tumbled 1.47 percent, and WuXi Biologics declined 1.35 percent.
Wall Street provided a positive lead, with major averages opening higher on Friday and maintaining their gains throughout the session. The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged by 462.28 points, or 1.14 percent, to close at 41,175.08. The NASDAQ Composite rallied by 258.39 points, or 1.47 percent, ending at 17,877.79. The S&P 500 climbed by 63.97 points, or 1.15 percent, to finish at 5,634.61.
For the week, the Dow Jones increased by 1.3 percent, the NASDAQ by 1.4 percent, and the S&P 500 by 1.5 percent.
The positive trend on Wall Street was driven by comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, indicating that the central bank is prepared to lower interest rates at its next monetary policy meeting in September.
In other U.S. economic news, the Commerce Department reported a significant rise in new home sales for July.
Following a rebound in the previous session, crude oil prices saw another substantial increase on Friday. West Texas Intermediate crude for October delivery surged by $1.82, or 2.5 percent, to $74.83 a barrel, following a $1.08, or 1.5 percent, increase to $73.01 a barrel on Thursday. Despite this, crude oil prices fell by 0.9 percent for the week due to earlier sell-offs.
