China stocks continued to jog in place Wednesday as investors wait on major central banks to launch new monetary easing policies.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index edged 0.1% lower to 19,789 in slow trading, and the index of Chinese companies fell 0.5% to 9,470.
Investors’ focus is on a speech scheduled Friday by Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke. The hope is that he will announce plans for a new round of quantitative easing, so-called QE3. The market is also looking for the European Central Bank to pump money into the region’s economy to prop up the Euro.
But even if the money begins to flow, the effect on stocks may not be lasting, said Steven Leung, director of institutional sales at UOB Kay Hian. He told Equities that raw materials, especially gold, would get a bounce, but that might be about it.
“We are far away from any fundamental bottoming,” Leung said. End
DAILY FIX
Hong Kong Blue Chips: -23, -0.1%, to 19,789, 08-29-12, Hang Seng Index
Chinese Stocks in Hong Kong: -51, -0.5%, to 9,470, 08-29-12, HSCE Index
Shanghai Stocks: -20, -1.0% to 2,053, 08-29-12, Shanghai Composite Index.
Chinese Stocks in the U.S.: +2.1, 366.4, 08-28-12, Bank of New York Mellon, ADR Index-China
Insight: Hong Kong continued to trade in a narrow range ahead of Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke’s speech Friday. Another drop in Shanghai’s A-shares also weighed on Hong Kong stocks. Continuing the trend of weak corporate results, China Communication Construction (CCCGY) slipped 0.6% after announcing a drop in earnings. KGI Research
Quotable: “US will announce revised 2Q GDP on Wednesday, market consensus is at 1.7% vs an initial reading of 1.5%, this figure may govern direction of the global markets in the near term.” BOCOM International. 8-29-12
Chinese Company to Watch: China Life “We upgrade China Life to Buy for its higher-than-expected business improvement and relatively low valuation.” BOCOM International. 8-29-12
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For a list of Chinese companies sold in the U.S. and information on each company go to http://www.adrbnymellon.com/dr_country_profile.jsp?country=CN
