Countervailing forces in Asia – ‘Plunge’ for tech giants in Hong Kong

Markets in the Asia-Pacific region are showing mixed signs at the start of the week, with tech giants in Hong Kong to mark “dips” dragging down the general index.

In particular, Alibaba loses about 4% and JD.com slips 3%, squeezing the Hang Seng by about -0.75%. Cathay Pacific, on the other hand, jumped 2.36% after authorities announced that hotel quarantine for travelers would be reduced to 3 from the current 7 days, although there would be a four-day post-quarantine surveillance period.

In mainland China the Shanghai Composite gains 0.2% and Shenzhen is flat with a 0.15% rise. Over the weekend, China released trade data for July that showed dollar-denominated exports rose 18 percent compared to the same period last year. That performance beat analysts’ expectations for a 15% rise, according to Reuters.

China’s imports rose 2.3 percent in July compared with the same period in 2021, missing forecasts for a 3.7 percent rise.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 is making small losses. Oz Minerals shares rallied 35% after the company rejected BHP’s A$8.34 billion ($5.76 billion) takeover bid.

In Japan the Nikkei 225 gains 0.18%, while the Topix index posted marginal gains. SoftBank’s stock adds 0.78% ahead of its results announcement.

At South Korea, the Kospi is making marginal losses, while the Kosdaq is at -0.31%. Chipmaker SK Hynix fell 2.75% after a Korea Herald report said the city of Yeoju wants more financial compensation to allow the installation of pipes to transport huge amounts of water to its plant in another South Korean city .

The broadest index MSCI Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan are down 0.59%.