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HK shares end 3-day rally; China stocks gain for 4th day

Published 06/29/2009, 05:06 AM
Updated 06/29/2009, 05:10 AM
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* China shares at 12-month high led by coal, property

* Shanghai Composite Index seen headed above 3,000 points

* HK shares slip 0.4 pct; turnover drops to three-month low (Updates to close)

By Parvathy Ullatil & Claire Zhang

HONG KONG/SHANGHAI, June 29 (Reuters) - Chinese stocks rose 1.61 percent on Monday, hitting a fresh one-year closing high for a fourth session in a row, with coal and property counters strong as signs of economic recovery and ample liquidity boosted the market.

In Hong Kong, shares dropped 0.39 percent on Monday, deflating a three-session rally as lower energy prices weighed on resources-linked counters, while turnover dropped to a three-month low as investors took to the sidelines ahead of the expiration of index futures.

"The market has entered a choppy phase after four straight months of gains. It will continue to consolidate around this level as investors seek evidence of an economic recovery that hs already been factored into the rally," said Linus Yip, strategist with First Shanghai Securities.

TURNOVER DRIES UP IN HONG KONG

The benchmark Hang Seng Index finished down 71.75 points at 18,528.51 after slipping in and out of positive territory.

Turnover slowed to HK$50 billion, the lowest since the end of March, from Friday's HK$62.5 billion ahead of the expiration of index futures on Monday and a heavy calendar of key economic data this week.

The June contract expired at 18,570 points, while the July contract moved up 36 points to 18,574 by the end of the day's trade.

Data out this week, including China's Purchasing Managers Index on Wednesday, U.S. Consumer confidence on Tuesday, and U.S. jobs report and manufacturing data on Thursday, could be make-or-break factors in determining whether the recent rally has any legs.

"Money is still pouring into Hong Kong, the monetary authority has been intervening repeatedly to hold up the peg. But a lot of that is bypassing the secondary market and heading for the IPO market," said First Shanghai's Yip.

The China Enterprises Index, which represents top locally listed mainland Chinese stocks, closed down 0.45 percent at 10,987.57.

Bucking the trend, CITIC Pacific jumped 6.7 percent to HK$16.28 after Goldman Sachs added the company to its conviction buy list, arguing that the steel-to-property conglomerate's valuation looked attractive compared with Chinese peers.

The investment bank also projected CITIC's special steel manufacturing business would benefit from China's strong vehicle production and sales growth. Goldman Sachs raised its target price on the stock to HK$19.40 from HK$16.90.

Offshore oil specialist CNOOC shrank 2.3 percent to HK$9.68 as oil prices pulled back towards $68 per barrel with an easing of tensions in energy-rich Nigeria providing investors with an excuse to take profit.

Asia's largest oil & gas producer PetroChina gave up 0.6 percent.

Gold miner Zijin Mining slipped 3.8 percent after the price of the precious metal softened a touch, giving up gains from the previous session when it briefly rose to a two-week high.

Chinese supermarket chain operator Lianhua Supermarket Holdings jumped 13 percent intraday to a seven-month high on Monday after it announced a plan to buy Hualian Supermarket for $71.97 million to further expand its presence in Shanghai.

Lianhua pulled back slightly to finish up 11.1 percent at HK$12.98, from the session high of HK$13.20, with a thin 1.73 million shares changing hands.

Zhong An Real Estate Ltd surged as much as 17 percent on Monday after its chairman, Shi Kancheng, said he sold a 5.15 percent of the company to Atlantis Investment Management Ltd.

The stock hit a high of HK$3.35 shortly after trading resumed in the afternoon but scaled back to close the day at HK$3.25, up 13.6 percent.

SHANGHAI INDEX HEADED ABOVE 3000 PTS

The Shanghai Composite Index ended up 47.103 points at 2,975.314, just off its intraday high of 2,976.922.

Gaining Shanghai A shares outnumbered losers by 602 to 277, while turnover in Shanghai A shares rose to 136.5 billion yuan ($20.0 billion) from Friday's 115.0 billion yuan.

"The index is maintaining its uptrend as it prepares to tackle the 3,000-point mark, thanks to ample money available in the market," said Zheshang Securities analyst Zhang Yanbing.

Coal and property shares led the day's rise, with China Shenhua Energy jumping 7.9 percent to 29.82 yuan and China Vanke, China's largest listed property developer, gaining 2.3 percent to 12.89 yuan.

The official China Securities Journal quoted Frank Gong, chief China strategist at JP Morgan, as saying that 3,000 points would not be the peak for the Shanghai index this year and that earnings growth at listed companies could support another 20 percent rise in the Chinese stock market over the next 12 months.

JP Morgan also raised its forecasts for China's gross domestic product growth to 7.8 percent in 2009, from 7.2 percent previously, and to 9.0 percent in 2010, from 8.5 percent.

Chinese stocks continued to draw strength from ample liquidity in the financial markets.

The official Shanghai Securities News quoted Cheng Siwei, an influential former Chinese lawmaker, as saying that about 2.4 trillion yuan of new lending in the first quarter of this year was used for investment purposes, including investments in stocks and property.

Several analysts cited estimates that up to 1 trillion yuan in new loans this year had found their way into the stock market.

They believe the index could soon rise above 3,000 points, although worries about possible negative surprises from the first-half earnings reporting season next month may make investors cautious and trigger profit-taking.

Spirits makers outperformed on expectations of higher prices, with Kweichow Moutai, one of the country's top makers of traditional Chinese liquor, climbing 7.8 percent to 147.72 yuan.

Shanxi Xinghuacun Fen Wine Factory on Monday said it had raised prices of some products by 10 percent, effective from June 26. The shares were suspended from trade on Monday after advancing 6 percent the previous session.

Gezhouba Group, a hydraulic engineering company, gained 3.7 percent to 11.66 yuan after estimating that first-half profit may rise more than 50 percent due to an increase in engineering contracts. (Editing by Chris Lewis)

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