Hong Kong stocks fall as Didi delisting sours sentiment
04:19, 3 December 2021
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index tested over one-year low on Friday as tech shares slumped following Didi Global’s announcement to delist from the US stock market.
Chinese ride-hailing platform Didi Global said it will pursue a Hong Kong listing after delisting its American depositary shares (ADS) from the New York Stock Exchange.
Didi’s doomed New York-listing lasted just over five-months as Beijing authorities scrutinised the firm on data security grounds and called for the removal of its apps from smartphone app stores in China.
US SEC to boot non-compliant foreign listing
Investor sentiment furthered soured as market watchdog US Securities and Exchange Commission overnight on Thursday finalised rules forcing Chinese companies listed in the US to disclose whether they are government-controlled entities.
Chinese firms will also have to allow US authorities access to their books for auditing purposes or risk being kicked off US exchanges.
New York-listed ADS of Chinese electric vehicle start-ups Nio, Xpeng and Li Auto dropped over 5% each overnight on Thursday.
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Hang Seng TECH Index down 28% in 2021
On Friday, Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng Index fell 0.7% to 23,612 by Friday lunch. The index had closed at a 14-month low 23,475 on Tuesday.
Hang Seng TECH Index fell 2.3% with index heavyweights Alibaba Group and Tencent Holdings slumping 4.6% and 2.9% by midday.
The sectoral index took its year-to-date losses to over 28%, as of Friday.
Australia sees four-week losing streak
Elsewhere, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 Index rose 0.4% to 27,857.63 by Friday afternoon. The index was on track to post its second weekly loss in a row, down over 3%.
Japan Airlines and ANA Holdings jumped over 4% each on Friday after the Japanese government reversed its ban on incoming international flight reservations.
In Australia, benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index snapped two days of losses to rise 0.3% by late afternoon on Friday. However, the index was on track to post its fourth straight week of losses.
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