Hong Kong stocks waver as investors search for catalysts to drive momentum

The Hang Seng Index fell 0.2 per cent to 24,476.90 at 11.10am local time, after rising as much as 0.6 per cent. The Hang Seng Tech Index dropped 0.1 per cent. On the mainland, the CSI 300 Index rose 0.2 per cent, while the Shanghai Composite Index was little changed.

EV maker Li Auto jumped 2.7 per cent to HK$116, Geely Automobile Holdings climbed 3.6 per cent to HK$18.90 and BYD advanced 0.6 per cent to HK$123.20.

On the flip side, search-engine leader Baidu slumped 4.5 per cent to HK$85.20, as Morgan Stanley analysts forecast a 15 per cent drop in advertising revenue in the second quarter due to limited monetisation for its AI search. Smartphone maker Xiaomi slid 1.8 per cent to HK$56.25, while short-video platform Kuaishou Technology lost 0.9 per cent to HK$68.95 and e-commerce giant JD.com eased 0.6 per cent to HK$123.90.

Beijing on Wednesday pledged to curb “irrational competition” in the EV sector during a State Council meeting chaired by Premier Li Qiang. Authorities said they would step up price monitoring, regulate the market and push companies to innovate and improve quality to stabilise the industry and safeguard economic growth.

US stocks closed higher overnight, with the S&P 500 rising 0.3 per cent and the Dow Jones advancing 0.5 per cent, after President Donald Trump said that he “is not planning on doing anything” to remove Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell. Rumours that Powell was likely to be fired sparked a drop in stocks and the dollar earlier in the session.