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Concerns about trade tensions between China and the US drove Hong Kong stocks lower for a second day, as the world’s two largest economies stopped short of finalising a deal that would extend a 90-day tariff pause.
The Hang Seng Index fell 0.5 per cent to 25,393.80 as of 10.01am local time, while the Hang Seng Tech Index slumped 1.8 per cent. On the mainland, the CSI 300 Index and the Shanghai Composite Index both rose 0.5 per cent.
Electric-vehicle makers led the declines, as Li Auto tumbled 9.1 per cent to HK$109 and BYD sank 6.3 per cent to HK$122. Post owner Alibaba Group Holding slid 2.5 per cent to HK$117.70 and rival JD.com dropped 2.3 per cent to HK$127.40. HSBC Holdings rose 0.2 per cent to HK$101 ahead of its earnings release.
China and the US concluded their third round of trade negotiations in Stockholm, with the two sides remaining at odds over the extension of a ceasefire plan. Chinese negotiators said that an extension agreement was reached, but US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said China had “jumped the gun a little” and that all terms needed to be approved by President Donald Trump.
Investors are also keeping a close eye on the US Federal Reserve’s rate decision and the unfolding earnings season. The Fed is widely expected to keep its benchmark interest rate between 4.25 and 4.5 per cent on Thursday. Some eight companies in the Hang Seng Index are due to release interim reports this week. Among them, HSBC Holdings will likely say that second-quarter profit dropped 19 per cent from a year earlier.
Other major Asia-Pacific markets were mixed: Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped 0.3 per cent, South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.6 per cent and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.5 per cent.
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