Hong Kong Shares May See Renewed Consolidation

(RTTNews) - The Hong Kong stock market bounced higher again on Wednesday, one day after ending the seven-day winning streak in which it had advanced almost 1,050 points or 4.2 percent. The Hang Seng Index now sits just above the 25,910-point plateau although it may hand back those gains on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is soft, thanks to profit taking and weakness among the technology stocks. The European and U.S. markets were mixed to lower and the Asian bourses are likely to follow a similar path.

The Hang Seng finished modestly higher on Wednesday as gains from the technology and insurance companies were offset by weakness among the financials and energy stocks.

For the day, the index gained 62.90 points or 0.24 percent to finish at 25,915.82 after trading between 25,729.86 and 25,973.94.

The lead from Wall Street is uninspired as the major averages opened higher on Wednesday but quickly headed south and finished mostly in the red on profit taking.

The Dow gained 263.24 points or 0.49 percent to finish at 54,349.12, while the NASDAQ tumbled 221.55 points or 0.83 percent to end at 26,363.44 and the S&P 500 sank 12.97 points or 0.17 percent to close at 7,723.55.

The downturn by the markets reflected concerns about AI spending after SpaceX (SPCX) reported its first quarterly results as a public company, revealing an unwelcome spike in capital spending.

In U.S. economic news, payroll processor ADP said private sector employment increased by less than expected in the month of July.

Crude oil prices were down for a third straight day on Wednesday on continued optimism for the reopening of Strait of Hormuz. West Texas Intermediate crude for September delivery was down $0.49 or 0.65 percent at $75.28 per barrel.