Bay Area plan triggers stocks rally
Stock markets on the mainland and in Hong Kong were given a boost on Tuesday as investors took heart from the news that the muchawaited blueprint for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area will be unveiled soon.
Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor said on Tuesday the central government is poised to outline details of the Bay Area’s development plan within days, and that a symposium on the matter will be held in Hong Kong on Feb 21, to be attended by senior officials from Macao and Guangdong province.
A shares on the mainland markets surged, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index edging up 0.68 percent to close at 2,671.89, and the Shenzhen Component Index closing 1.15 percent higher at 8,010.07 points.
Hong Kong investors responded relatively calmly as the Hang Seng Index put on just 0.1 percent to close at 28,171 points, while the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index closed up 0.25 percent at 11,044.
Bay Area-related stocks were the star performers, with Kaisa Group, which boasts an abundant land bank in the region, soaring 3.5 percent and Shenzhen International Holdings and Shenzhen Invest both notching up more than 1 percent.
5G concept stocks also did well as China Tower gained 2.4 percent and Yangtze Optical Fibre and Cable climbed 3.5 percent.
Linus Yip Sheung-chi — chief strategist at First Shanghai Securities — said the Hong Kong market’s flat performance was due to its already high level as the HSI had accumulated some 3,000 points since early this year.
He said the spotlight has been on the Bay Area development plan for a long time, and any fresh piece of news would certainly lift market sentiment.
Yip noted that since the Bay Area plan is a long-term initiative, its benefits
may take some time to materialize. The Hong Kong stock market is unlikely to rise too much in the near term but, as morale goes up with the impending release of the Bay Area blueprint, there would be stability in the local equity markets.
At the same time, worries shrouding the mainland’s stock markets seem to be dissipating as A shares remained bullish on Monday after trading resumed following the week-long Spring Festival break despite earlier profit warnings from listed companies under the ChiNext Index and the Shenzhen SME Board Index that had rattled investors.
Yip suggested that investors keep an eye on 5G concept shares. Since the outlook remains cloudy, some defensive and high-dividend stocks are also recommended.