By V. Phani Kumar
HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Hong Kong shares edged slightly lower but traded within a narrow range early Friday, with Chinese property developers declining amid concerns Beijing might raise interest rates. The Hang Seng Index (HK:HANGSENG 22,563, -106.05, -0.47%) dropped 0.3% to 22,601.52 and the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index lost 0.3% to 12,398.36. China Overseas Land & Investment Ltd. (CAOVY 0.00, 0.00, 0.00%) (HK:688 14.48, -0.28, -1.90%) gave up 1.9% and China Resources Land Ltd. (HK:1109 13.50, -0.04, -0.30%) (CRBJY 0.00, 0.00, 0.00%) fell 0.6%, offsetting gains in some banks, with heavyweight HSBC Holdings PLC (HK:5 79.85, -0.05, -0.06%) (HBC 51.55, -0.11, -0.21%) rising 0.3% in the wake of overnight gains on Wall Street. Gaming stocks rose, tracking U.S. casino operators, on news that U.S. Consul General Stephen Young has urged the Macau government to more fairly process labor requests by foreign investors. Shares of Sands China Ltd. (HK:1928 16.22, -0.02, -0.12%) (SCHYY 20.64, -0.50, -2.37%) rose 1.1% and Melco International Development Ltd. (HK:200 4.37, +0.16, +3.80%) (MDEVF 0.52, -0.08, -12.61%) rose 3.3%. China's Shanghai Composite Index (CN:SHCOMP 2,884, -13.91, -0.48%) , meanwhile, slipped 0.3% to 2,889.83. |
