The Hang Seng Index fell 124 points, or 0.5%, to close at 23,258 on Wednesday, reversing modest gains from the previous session as broad-based losses across financials, consumer, and technology sectors dragged the market lower.
Hang Seng slips by 0.5% at close
Investor sentiment soured amid growing concerns that the current three-month truce in China-U.S. trade negotiations, set to expire in July, may give way to renewed tensions and the reimposition of tariffs. The fragile market mood was further unsettled by a deepening price war in China’s highly competitive auto sector, after electric vehicle giant BYD Co. introduced fresh discounts on more than a dozen of its models, stoking fears of margin pressure across the industry.
Adding to the cautious tone, market participants remained wary ahead of the release of China's official Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) data due in the coming days, with many bracing for further signs of weakness in the manufacturing sector. Despite Beijing’s ongoing stimulus efforts, confidence remains low as factory output continues to lag, fueling concerns about the strength of the economic recovery.
U.S. stock futures dip
Meanwhile, U.S. stock futures slipped slightly following a rally on Wall Street the previous day, as traders adopted a wait-and-see stance ahead of highly anticipated earnings results from chipmaker Nvidia, a bellwether for the AI and tech sectors.
Among notable losers, automakers bore the brunt of the sell-off, with BYD Co. falling 2.7%, Li Auto shedding 2.4%, and Geely Auto down 2.0%. Consumer-related stocks also struggled, with Pop Mart International tumbling 6.7% — its sharpest one-day decline since early April — amid weaker-than-expected sales momentum and concerns over discretionary spending in China’s slowing economy.
