Alibaba Falls, Nio Rises: Hang Seng Weakens After Hong Kong Central Bank Hikes Rates

Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng Index edged lower on Thursday morning, with major U.S.-listed Chinese stocks trading mixed, after the city’s central bank hiked interest rates in tune with the U.S. Federal Reserve‘s move overnight.

The Hang Seng fell 0.16% in opening trade, following the Hong Kong Monetary Authority‘s move to raise its base rate by 75 bps.

Macro News: Hong Kong increased its base rate by 75 basis points for the second consecutive month, taking its borrowing cost to the highest level since 2019, reported the South China Morning Post. Local banks are expected to follow suit. The rate at which banks lend money to their top customers is currently between 5% and 5.25% at the city’s five largest banks.

Also Read: Federal Reserve Issues Second Straight 0.75% Interest Rate Hike: The Important Signal It’s Sending On Inflation

China and South Korea have renewed talks to open up their service sector economies which analysts say could be a win-win for both countries, reported the South China Morning Post.

Company News: Tesla Inc rival TSLA XPeng has cut vehicle prices as its orders may not have risen in line with its significant increase in production capacity, reported CnEVPost citing local media.

NIO has set up a new software company in Shanghai, where it is based, which could pave the way for the launch of its assisted driving system, reported CnEVPost.

New York-listed Chinese cloud computing firm Kingsoft Cloud Holdings Ltd. KC has submitted an application for a dual primary listing in Hong Kong, reported the South China Morning Post.

Global Markets: U.S. markets rallied on Wednesday after the Fed hiked rates in line with market expectations and its chairman hinted at slowing down tightening going forward.

Elsewhere in Asia, Australia’s ASX 200 traded 0.47% higher. Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up by 0.11%, while the South Korean Kospi rose 0.8%. China’s Shanghai Composite index traded higher by 0.23%.