HONG KONG, July 4 (Reuters) – Hong Kong shares are poised to
start extend this week’s gains on Wednesday as risky assets
across Asia found support on hopes that central banks around the
world would usher in more quantitative easing to counter weak
economic growth.
China shares rose for a third day on Tuesday while the
benchmark Hang Seng in Hong Kong, which reopened after a
holiday, was Asia’s top performer and hit a seven-week high. The
index closed up 1.5 percent.
Turnover is likely to be subdued however as U.S. markets saw
a shortened session overnight and will remain shut on Wednesday
for a public holiday.
Elsewhere in Asia, Japan’s Nikkei was up 0.5 percent
while South Korea’s KOSPI was up 0.3 percent as of 0035
GMT.
STOCKS TO WATCH
* Brazilian mining giant Vale SA
on Tuesday sold 750 million euros in bonds maturing in 2023, its
first euro-denominated issue in more than two years, as it takes
advantage of strong appetite for corporate debt in Europe.
* Chinese aluminum giant Chalco delayed plans to
acquire a controlling stake in Mongolia-focused coal miner
SouthGobi Resources Ltd on Tuesday, as it
continues to work on securing regulatory approvals in Mongolia
and outside.
Chalco and Ivanhoe said they would extend the time
for Chalco to make a proportional takeover bid for up to 60
percent of the common shares of SouthGobi by 30 days.
Shares of SouthGobi rose more than 9 percent in
Toronto after Chalco reiterated its interest in acquiring a
majority stake in the coal miner despite political obstacles.
* Activision Blizzard, the biggest U.S. video game
publisher by market capitalization, plans to offer its popular
‘Call of Duty’ title as a free-to-play online game in China in a
bid to expand its footprint in Asia. The video game publisher
announced a partnership on Tuesday with Tencent Holdings Limited
, an Internet and wireless services provider that will
have an exclusive license to operate the shooter game in China.
MARKET EVENTS
– Xiao Nan Guo Restaurants Holdings Ltd trading
debut
ECONOMIC DATA
– China HSBC services PMI for June
– Euro zone retail sales for May
– Euro zone markit services PMI for June
– UK Markit/CIPS service PMI for June
– Australia retail sales for May
(Reporting by Vikram Subhedar; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)
