The Hang Seng Index rose 1.5 percent to 17,368.48 at 10:55 a.m. local time. The biggest increase in more than two weeks put the index on track for a second consecutive weekly increase. The Tech Index rose 1.6 percent, while the Shanghai Composite Index gained less than 0.1 percent.
“The positive has actually been the earnings cycle,” Wendy Liu, chief Asia and China equity strategist at JPMorgan, said in a press conference earlier this week, as the macroeconomic environment is weak. The MSCI China Index has seen “a slight upward revision” since July and the consensus expects 14 percent year-on-year growth, she said.
“If the returns are right in Chinese equities, you get the multiples and the inflows will follow,” she added.
The bank will also prepare “incremental policy measures” to help the country’s economy achieve its full-year growth target, he added.
Meanwhile, shares of ceramics manufacturer Suzhou Kematek rose by over 360 percent from the issue price to 37 yuan on its first day of trading in Shenzhen.
Other major Asian markets rose. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 2.9 percent, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index climbed 1.3 percent and South Korea’s Kospi index rose 1.8 percent.
