Alibaba, Nio Fall Over 3%: Hang Seng Opens Weaker As Focus Turns To Fed Minutes, China COVID-19 Cases

Hong Kong stocks opened in the red on Tuesday as investors and traders began considering the near-term risks weighing on the market, including the rising COVID-19 cases in China and the Federal Reserve’s minutes scheduled to be released on Wednesday. The benchmark Hang Seng lost close to 1% in morning trade.

“November PMI data will be closely watched this week for the latest readings on economic momentum as central banks deliberate the appropriate magnitude of future interest rate hikes. Composite PMI data for the US, UK and Europe are all expected to show that economies are slowing further below the 50 expansion/contraction line,” ANZ Research said in a note.

Xpeng and Meituan stocks lost over 4%, while shares of Alibaba and Nio shed over 3%.

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Macro News: Beijing has warned it was facing its most severe test of COVID as it tightened rules for entering the city, reported Reuters. Guangzhou, a city of about 19 million people is battling the largest of recent outbreaks and has ordered a five-day lockdown for its most populous district Baiyun, according to the report.

Chinese financial regulators have asked banks to stabilize lending to property developers and construction companies, reflecting Beijing’s latest effort to turn around the real-estate crisis and boost economic growth, reported Bloomberg.

The U.S. and Chinese defense heads are likely to meet for the first time since Beijing suspended talks with Washington over Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, reported Bloomberg.

China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (OTC: SNPMF) has signed one of the biggest-ever liquefied natural gas deals -- a 27-year agreement to purchase 4 million tonnes a year of the fuel from QatarEnergy, reported FT.

NIO has started offering ET7, EL7 and ET5 purchase options in Germany, reported CnEVPost.

Top Gainers and Losers: Meituan and Alibaba Group Holding Limited were the top losers among Hang Seng constituents, having shed over 2.5%. Longfor Group Holdings Limited and Hengan International Group Company Limited were the top gainers, having risen over 3% and 1.5%, respectively.

Global News: U.S. futures traded in the green on Tuesday morning Asia session. The Dow Jones futures were up 0.08% while the Nasdaq futures rose 0.14%. The S&P 500 futures were trading higher by 0.11%.

Elsewhere in Asia-Pacific, Australia’s ASX 200 was up 0.59%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 traded 0.73% higher, while China’s Shanghai Composite index was trading flat. South Korea’s Kospi lost 0.23%.

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