Hong Kong shares dipped 303 points or 1.1% to 26,769 in early Friday trade, snapping a five-session advance and pulling back from an over one-month high. Sentiment weakened after a sell-off on Wall Street overnight, as Fed officials signaled caution over future rate cuts. Meantime, fresh data releases from China added pressure to sentiment, with industrial output and retail sales posting their slowest growth in 14 months in October. Simultaneously, new yuan loans came in below expectations, while fixed investment dropped more than estimated for the first ten months of the year. All sectors retreated, with tech and consumer names sliding over 1%. Among notable decliners were XPeng (-3.6%), Lenovo Group (-2.8%), and Techtronic Industries (-2.0%). Still, the market remains on course for a second straight weekly gain, up about 2% so far, supported by renewed pledges from China’s central bank to maintain a loose monetary stance to shore up the sluggish economy.
