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By Rita Chang
HONG KONG, March 20 (Reuters) - Hong Kong stocks slid on
Thursday as Wall Street losses prompted investors to pocket the
previous session’s sharp gains, while resource stocks suffered
from a broad-based sell-off in commodities.
PetroChina Co Ltd (0857.HK: Quote, Profile, Research), the world’s most valuable energy
producer, tumbled more than 8 percent at one point after earnings
came in below expectations. Its shares closed down 6.8 percent at
HK$9.170.
Adding to the selling pressure was a rush by investors to
lighten their load on the last trading day before a four-day
Easter weekend.
But many brokers and strategists said the market should turn
a corner soon.
“I think the chances of a bear rally are gaining some
traction sooner rather than later,” said Matt McKeith, head of
equity dealing at First State Investments. “A combination of the
Fed and the over-speculation on the downside have lifted some of
the pressure.”
“Funds have large cash balances in the new quarter which have
to go somewhere,” McKeith added.
The Federal Reserve on Tuesday cut rates by a hefty
three-quarters of a percentage point and better-than-expected
results at investment banks helped ease some angst about the
ongoing credit crisis.
The benchmark Hang Seng Index .HSI closed down 3.5 percent,
or 758.72 points, to end at 21,108.22, a 5.1 percent loss for the
week.
The China Enterprises index of H shares , or Hong
Kong-listed shares in mainland companies, fell 5.3 percent, or
602.55 points, to 10,836.20.
Mainboard turnover was HK$83.3 billion (US$10.7 billion)
compared to Wednesday’s HK$98.7 billion.
PetroChina’s shares dropped after posting a tepid 3.7 percent
rise in second-half earnings. It blamed refining losses and $6
billion in special taxes for its weak showing and said it would
speed up overseas exploration in 2008
[ID:nHKG270338]
Sliding oil and gold prices knocked other resource plays.
Gold miner Zijin Mining (2899.HK: Quote, Profile, Research) dived 6.5 percent to
HK$6.49 in heavy trade, and Sino Gold (1862.HK: Quote, Profile, Research) dropped 9 percent
percent to HK$50.5.
Offshore oil specialist CNOOC Ltd (0883.HK: Quote, Profile, Research) fell 10.5 percent
to HK$10.18.
Hong Kong property developers were also big losers. Hang Lung
Properties (0101.HK: Quote, Profile, Research) slid 7.3 percent to HK$24.1 and Sun Hung Kai
Properties (0016.HK: Quote, Profile, Research) shed nearly 7 percent to HK$108.40.
Wireless carrier China Mobile (0941.HK: Quote, Profile, Research), the day’s most
heavily traded stock, fell 3.2 percent to HK$104.20.
Ping An Insurance Co Ltd (2318.HK: Quote, Profile, Research) finished down 6.1 percent
to HK$49.90. China’s second-largest insurer, which agreed to buy
half of Fortis’s (FOR.AS: Quote, Profile, Research) (FOR.BR: Quote, Profile, Research) asset management unit on
Wednesday, posted a 137 percent jump in second-half profit last
year, driven by contributions from its fledgling banking unit and
strong investment returns. [ID:nHKG259104]
Sinopec Corp (0386.HK: Quote, Profile, Research) sank 6.2 percent to HK$6.17. The top
Asian refiner has won a $1.7 billion government bailout to
compensate for refining losses incurred during 2007 and the first
quarter of 2008, when crude oil prices soared to record highs,
the firm said on Wednesday [ID:nHKF079009].
(US$1=HK$7.8)
