Hong Kong Market extends gains

Hong Kong share market finished session higher on Thursday, 23 June 2022, extending last week's rally, on tracking a surge on Wall Street last Friday as fears over aggressive rate hikes by the U.S. Federal Reserve eased somewhat after U.S. data showed a slight fall in the country's inflation outlook.

Adding to the positive sentiment was Chinese President Xi Jinping pledge to take more effective measures to achieve the country's economic and social development goals as well as data showing profits across China's industrial firms above designated size improved in May from the previous month.

At closing bell, the benchmark Hang Seng Index added 510.46 points, or 2.35%, to 22,229.52. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index was up 187.88 points, or 2.46%, to 7,816.94.

Stocks tracked a surge on Wall Street from the outset after the University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers released Friday showed that U.S. consumers forecast inflation to rise at an annualized rate of 5.3% as of the end of June, revised downward from the preliminary reading of 5.4%. The slight downward revision raised cautious hopes that the Fed may not push as hard for aggressive rate hikes, which lead to higher borrowing costs for firms and households.

Profits at China's industrial firms shrank at a slower pace in May following a sharp fall in April, as activity in major manufacturing hubs resumed, but COVID-19 restrictions still weighed on factory production and squeezed factory margins. Profits fell 6.5% from a year earlier, less than the 8.5% decline in April, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Monday. May's improvement was driven by surging profits in the coal mining and oil and gas extraction sectors, as the Russia-Ukraine war sparked a rally in global commodity prices.

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