KGI Asia Commentary
Hang Seng Index fell 282 points on Wednesday
The Hang Seng Index fell 282 points or 1.4% to 20,367 on Wednesday. HSTECH fell 100 points or 2.4% to 4,102 and HSCEI fell 113 points or 1.6% to 6,889. Daily market turnover was HK$99.9bn.
Dow ends lower on Wednesday after mixed quarterly results
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.23%, or 79 points, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq closed flat. Shares of streaming giant Netflix fell more than 3% after it reported mixed first-quarter results and lower-than-expected guidance as it delayed plans to broaden its crackdown on password sharing. Meanwhile, social media company Meta Platforms fell slightly, announcing a new round of tech layoffs to cut costs. Technology shares were also dragged down by semiconductor stocks, with ASML down 3% after reporting a 46% drop in first-quarter net bookings. Shares of Intel Corp fell about 2% after announcing that it would stop making chips for bitcoin mining. Meanwhile, financial stocks continued to release quarterly results, with results from regional banks and Morgan Stanley in focus. Morgan Stanley reported first-quarter earnings that topped Wall Street expectations, but profits fell 19% amid weak deal-making activity. Meanwhile, energy shares dragged the broader market lower as oil prices fell, even as data showed weekly U.S. stockpiles fell more than expected last week.
Euro zone core inflation rises to 5.7% in March
Inflation in the euro zone slowed last month but underlying readings remained elevated, Eurostat said on Wednesday, confirming preliminary data that raised worries about the persistence of price pressures. Excluding unprocessed food and fuel, and also strips out alcohol and tobacco, the figure rises from 5.6% to 5.7%. Elsewhere, U.K. consumer price inflation rose to 10.1% in March, down from 10.4% in February, but below the 9.8% forecast by economists polled by Reuters. Data showed that UK wage growth slowed less than expected in March, with private sector wages rising by 6.9% and public sector wages rising by 5.3%. Economists said that could complicate whether the BoE pauses hikes at its May monetary policy meeting.
Hong Kong Stock Connect had a net inflow of HK$2.96bn on Wednesday, of which Tracker Fund (2800) had the largest net inflow, reaching HK$1.11bn; followed by HSCEI ETF (2828). Tencent (700) recorded the largest net outflow at HK$0.36bn, followed by Kuaishou (1024).
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