Hong Kong Market May Test Resistance At 28,000 Points

(RTTNews) - The Hong Kong stock market has tracked higher in two straight sessions, advancing more than 140 points or 0.5 percent along the way. The Hang Seng Index now rests just above the 27,640-point plateau, and it's expected to open higher again on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is broadly positive, thanks to proposed tax reform in the United States and a bump in crude oil prices. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses are expected to follow that lead.

The Hang Seng finished modestly higher on Wednesday following gains from the insurance companies and casinos, while the financials and oil companies were mixed.

For the day, the index climbed 129.42 points or 0.47 percent to finish at 27,642.43 after trading between 27,503.05 and 27,673.40.

Among the actives, Lenovo Group surged 4.32 percent, while China Mengniu Dairy soared 3.93 percent, Sands China spiked 2.31 percent, China Resources Land climbed 1.88 percent, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China jumped 1.22 percent, China Life advanced 0.85 percent, New World Development added 0.72 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) shed 0.68 percent, China Mobile picked up 0.50 percent, Ping An Insurance gained 0.49 percent, CNOOC gathered 0.20 percent, BOC Hong Kong eased 0.26 percent and Hong Kong & China Gas fell 0.14 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is firm as stocks moved higher on Wednesday following the lackluster performance in the previous session.

The NASDAQ added 73.10 points or 1.15 percent to 6,453.26, while the Dow rose 56.39 points or 0.25 percent to 22,340.71 and the S&P climbed 10.20 points or 0.41 percent to 2,507.04.

The strength was partly due to a positive reaction to a Republican tax reform plan, which calls for a reduction in the corporate tax rate to 20 percent.

In economic news, the Commerce Department noted a bigger than expected jump in durable goods orders in August, while the National Association of Realtors reported a steep drop in pending home sales in August.

Crude oil futures continued to rise Wednesday, as U.S. oil inventories unexpectedly dwindled. WTI light sweet crude oil was up 23 cents at $52.12, multi-month highs.