Travel bookings in China have recovered to pre-pandemic
levels after being suppressed last year by zero-COVID policies,
and are set to boom for the upcoming May Day holiday, according
to data from popular booking apps.
Hong Kong shares recovered earlier losses at close, even as
worries including big shareholders of major tech giants selling
stakes and geopolitical tensions weighed.
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd plunged as much as 5.2%
and finished 2% lower, as SoftBank Group Corp moved to
sell almost all of its remaining shares in the e-commerce giant,
the Financial Times reported, citing regulatory filings it had
analyzed.
Taiwan said on Wednesday it had successfully urged China to
drastically narrow its plan to close air space north of the
island, averting wider travel disruption in a period of high
tension in the region due to China's military exercises.
Embattled property developer Sunac China , one of
many Chinese developers that defaulted last year, plunged 55.5%
as the stock resumed trade following a suspension of more than a
year.
Tencent Holdings Ltd , however, recovered some
losses by adding 1.7% after a 5.2% plunge in the previous
session, as Prosus NV said it may sell more shares in
the social media giant.
(Reporting by Shanghai Newsroom; Editing by Sonia Cheema, Varun
H K and Christina Fincher)
(Updates to market close)
SHANGHAI, April 13 (Reuters) - China stocks fell on
Thursday, dragged down by a slump in Chatbot-related companies
that had surged amid speculative bets and despite data showing
China's exports posted a surprise surge in March.
China's blue-chip index CSI 300 closed down 0.7%,
while the Hang Seng Index edged up 0.2%.
Chinese outbound shipments rose 14.8% in March, snapping
five months of declines, while imports fell a
smaller-than-expected 1.4%, customs data showed on Thursday.
However, analysts cautioned the improvement partly reflected
suppliers catching up with unfulfilled orders after last year's
COVID-19 disruptions.
"The strong export growth is unlikely to sustain given the
weak global macro outlook," said Zhiwei Zhang, chief economist
at Pinpoint Asset Management.
Chinese shares in artificial intelligence ,
communications equipment , and semiconductors slumped between 3.7% and 4.4% each, weighing down
China's benchmark .
Frenzy around OpenAI's ChatGPT chatbot had boosted shares of
Chinese companies in the tech, media and telecom (TMT) sector,
while analysts and authorities had repeatedly warned against
bubble risks.
Stocks in healthcare and tourism ,
meanwhile, jumped 2.3% and 1.7%, respectively.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.