Hong Kong Shares May Halt Slide On Thursday

(RTTNews) - The Hong Kong stock market has tracked lower in consecutive trading days, shedding almost 500 points or 1.9 percent in that span. The Hang Seng Index now sits just above the 25,440-point plateau although it may find support on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is murky amidst a lack of catalysts. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were mixed and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The TSE finished modestly lower on Tuesday as losses from the financials and technology stocks were mitigated by support from the property sector.

For the day, the index slumped 212.65 points or 0.83 percent to finish at 25,440.17 after trading between 25,323.33 and 25,498.39.

The lead from Wall Street suggests mild upside as the major averages opened higher on Wednesday and largely stayed that way, although the Dow slipped under water at the close.

The Dow dipped 21.58 points or 0.04 percent to finish at 53,770.27, while the NASDAQ climbed 143.04 points or 0.54 percent to end at 26,588.49 and the S&P 500 rose 20.30 points or 0.26 percent to close at 7,748.50.

The early strength on Wall Street came as fairly tame consumer price data eased concerns about the outlook for interest rates as inflation rose in line with estimates.

Buying interest waned over the course of the session, however, as the recent resurgence of Middle East tensions and the resulting spike in crude oil prices have fueled inflation concerns, although crude futures were little changed on Wednesday.

Crude oil prices inched lower after Pakistan announced initiating efforts to bring the U.S. and Iran back to the negotiating table. West Texas Intermediate crude for September delivery was down $0.22 or 0.2 percent at $82.98 per barrel.