Local Shares Trim Losses At Close, US Data Eyed

Hong Kong shares narrowed early losses but stayed in negative territory at the close on Thursday, while their peers in the region ended mixed, as investors waited for clues on the pace of recovery of the world's largest economy.

The US is expected to release its first quarter GDP report later in the day and investors are closely watching for signs of inflation that could force central banks to dial down their stimulus measures.

The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong opened lower and fell by as many as 215 points, before ending the day down 52 points, or 0.2 percent, at 29,113.

Market turnover reached a hefty HK$250.5 billion.

The index’s worst performer was Meituan, which slid 2.8 percent ahead of its earnings release after reports said a competitor had implemented a transparent policy on rates that could lead to a war on cost reduction and subsidy.

Tencent sank 2 percent, as regulators reportedly ordered the tech giant to set up a new holding company for its finance-related businesses.

Smartphone maker Xiaomi was the benchmark’s top gainer, surging 3 percent after the company announced forecast-beating first quarter results.

Shares of Next Digital finished up 50 percent, after soaring more than 300 percent at one point. The parent company of the Apple Daily newspaper suspended the trading of its shares last week, after the Security Secretary moved to freeze its founder Jimmy Lai’s majority shareholding.

Across the border, markets headed north despite new figures showing the growth in industrial profits in the mainland slowed in April.

The Shanghai Composite Index put on 0.4 percent, while the blue-chip CSI300 index edged up 0.3 percent. The Shenzhen Composite added 0.8 percent.

Around the region, the Nikkei in Japan declined 0.3 percent, Seoul's Kospi inched down 1 percent, Taiwan lost 0.3 percent, Singapore gained 0.6 percent and Australia was flat.