China stocks flat, Hong Kong shares fall as focus shifts to Mideast tensions

China stocks flat, Hong Kong shares fall as focus shifts to Mideast tensions

Market sentiment weakened after fresh attacks in the Gulf pushed oil prices and bond yields higher.

Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng Index led losses across Asian markets, dropping 1.4% to mirror an overnight Wall Street decline. (EPA Images pic)
SHANGHAI:
China stocks were largely flat while Hong Kong shares declined today as investor focus shifted from US-China leaders’ two-day meeting to escalating tensions in the Middle East and a global bond selloff.

In early trade, the Shanghai Composite Index and China’s blue-chip index CSI300 held their ground at roughly 4,136 and 4,847 points, respectively.

Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng Index led losses across Asian markets, down 1.4%, mirroring an overnight decline on Wall Street.

Market sentiment weakened after fresh attacks in the Gulf pushed oil prices and bond yields higher.

A drone strike caused a fire at a nuclear power plant in the UAE, while Saudi Arabia said it intercepted three drones.

US President Donald Trump also warned Iran to move “fast” on a deal.

Investors are increasingly concerned that central banks may tighten policy further to contain inflation pressures, overshadowing the Trump-Xi summit, which produced limited concrete outcomes.

“In our view, the summit delivered short-term stabilisation for both leaders,” Nomura economist Lu Ting said, referring to a new paradigm described by Washington as a pragmatic arrangement and by Beijing as a “Constructive Strategic Stability US-China Relationship”.

“We believe the summit is overall a success, though it might disappoint some people who had too high expectations right before the summit,” Lu Ting said.

China-listed agriculture stocks fell more than 2% after the White House said Beijing committed to buying at least US$17 billion worth of US agricultural products annually from 2026 to 2028.

Meanwhile, Chinese chipmakers rose after US officials indicated semiconductor export controls were not a key issue during talks in Beijing, suggesting any breakthrough on Nvidia’s H200 chip sales to China remains distant.

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