Hong Kong: Shares close down as investors wait for stimulus

[HONG KONG] Hong Kong stocks slipped on Tuesday, as investors waited for fresh mainland policies to guide money into the city's market and speculated on when the US Federal Reserve will raise interest rates.

The Hang Seng index fell 0.5 per cent, to 27,466.72, while the China Enterprises Index lost 0.7 per cent, to 14,201.63 points.

The Hong Kong market got little encouragement from the mainland market, which posted solid gains for a second straight session after plunging on Thursday.

After a surge in April, the Hong Kong market appears to have lacked a sense of direction, with main indexes confined to a narrow range.

China Investment Securities (HK) said Hang Seng has technical resistance at 27,700 points, but gets support at 27,200.

Many eyes are on how quickly the US economy is improving, which is key to timing of a Fed hike that could potentially draw money away from Hong Kong.

Among the most actively traded stocks on Hong Kong's main board were China Star Entertainment, up 22.3 per cent to HK$0.16 CCT Land, up 1.4 per cent to HK$0.07 and Hybrid Kinetic, up 43.5 per cent to HK$0.66.

REUTERS