HONG KONG, March 4 (Reuters) - Hong Kong stocks rose on Friday, ending the week higher as a bout of short-covering after a rally on Wall Street and continued strength in banking shares helped the market recover from the prior week's losses.
The Hang Seng Index <.HSI> finished the session up 1.2 percent at 23,408.86, gaining 1.7 percent on the week.
The China Enterprises Index <.HSCE> of top locally listed mainland companies outpaced the broader market on the day as well as on the week. It rose 1.51 percent on Friday and was up 4.7 percent on the week.
The Shanghai Composite <.SSEC> rose 1.35 percent
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Short-sellers pared bets heading into the weekend as stocks on Wall Street rallied and chalked up their biggest single-day gain in three months. Short-selling as a percentage of total turnover picked in Hong Kong this week hitting the highest so far this year on Wednesday.
* Tencent Holdings Ltd <0700.HK>, up 4.4 percent, hit a record high partly on short-covering as investors cut bearish bets. Tencent has been on a tear this year and is up 30 percent, easily outpacing the benchmark's 1.6 percent advance and bringing the company's market value to a shade below $50 billion.
* BYD Co Ltd <1211.HK> dropped 2 percent as some investors locked in quick gains after the carmaker reported weak February sales. It had gained about 15 percent over the prior two sessions.
WEEK AHEAD:
Trade figures from the United States, China, Germany and Taiwan are scheduled for next week, with analysts scouring the data for the impact of the expected pickup in global trade on corporate profits.
The Hong Kong stock exchange will extend trading hours in a bid to align timings more closely with the Shanghai stock exchange. Trading will begin at 9:30 a.m. and the midday trading break will be between 12:00 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. (Editing by Chris Lewis) (vikram.subhedar@thomsonreuters.com; +852 2843 6975; Reuters Messaging: vikram.subhedar.reuters.com@reuters.net))