The Hong Kong stock market has alternated between positive and negative finishes through the last four trading days since the end of the four-day losing streak in which it had plummeted almost 1,300 points or 6.4 percent. The Hang Seng Index now sits just above the 19,200-point plateau although it figures to find renewed support on Friday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on easing concerns over the ability of financial markets. The European and U.S. markets were sharply higher and the Asian bourses are expected to follow that lead.
The Hang Seng finished sharply lower on Thursday following losses from the financials, properties and oil and technology stocks.
For the day, the index plunged 335.96 points or 1.72 percent to finish at 19,203.91 after trading between 19,109.07 and 19,388.77.
Among the actives, Alibaba Group surrendered 1.89 percent, while Alibaba Health Info surged 3.88 percent, ANTA Sports declined 1.63 percent, China Life Insurance tumbled 1.99 percent, China Mengniu Dairy tanked 2.08 percent, China Resources Land rose 0.14 percent, CITIC slumped 1.45 percent, CNOOC plummeted 4.91 percent, Country Garden dropped 0.62 percent, CSPC Pharmaceutical eased 0.13 percent, Galaxy Entertainment weakened 1,18 percent, Hang Lung Properties stumbled 1.20 percent, Henderson Land sank 0.55 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas added 0.28 percent, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and New World Development both lost 0.24 percent, JD.com crashed 2.64 percent, Lenovo retreated 1.51 percent, Li Ning skidded 0.93 percent, Meituan shed 0.32 percent, Techtronic Industries and Xiaomi Corporation both fell 0.18 percent and WuXi Biologics plunged 3.65 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is broadly positive as the major averages quickly shook off a soft start on Thursday and accelerated firmly into positive territory, finishing near session highs.
The Dow surged 371.98 points or 1,17 percent to finish at 32,246.55, while the NASDAQ rallied 283.22 points or 2.48 percent to end at 11,717.28 and the S&P 500 jumped68.35 points or 1.76 percent to close at 3,960.28.
Stocks rallied following news that 11 banks including JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and Morgan Stanley (MS) have pledged $30 billion to support First Republic Bank (FRC) to shore up the beleaguered lender.
News that Credit Suisse will borrow up to $54 billion from the Swiss central bank to shore up liquidity and investor confidence also helped ease recent concerns about turmoil in the banking sector.
In economic news, the Labor Department said first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits pulled back more than expected last week. Also, the Labor Department reported that import prices edged slightly lower in February.
Crude oil prices climbed higher Thursday on reports that Saudi Arabia's energy minister and Russia's deputy prime minister met to discuss about ways to enhance market stability. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for April climbed $0.74 or 1.1 percent at $68.35 a barrel.
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