The Hang Seng Index commenced trading with a significant 1.1% increase, reaching 17,018.98 as of 9.51am local time. The Hang Seng Tech Index also displayed a positive performance, gaining 1.8%. Notably, Ping An Insurance witnessed a remarkable 1.5% rise to HK$33.50, attributed to its impressive first-quarter results where new-business values outperformed expectations. Ahead of its earnings report scheduled later on Wednesday, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearings saw a 1.2% increase to HK$233.40.
Other notable gainers included Alibaba Group Holding, which rallied 2.3% to HK$71.40, and Tencent Holdings, which climbed 1.9% to HK$338.20. Following the earnings announcement, Nomura analysts issued a note indicating that Ping An Insurance’s life insurance business surpassed estimates in terms of profit and new business value. As a result, they raised their target price for the stock to HK$54.41, suggesting a potential upside of 62% from current levels.
In contrast to the overall positive market sentiment, Mobvoi, a company specializing in speech recognition devices, experienced a decline of 17% from its IPO price to HK$3.15 on its trading debut in Hong Kong.
Positive gains were observed across other major Asian markets as well. Japan’s Nikkei 225 climbed a notable 2%, while South Korea’s Kospi advanced 1.8%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 also saw a modest 0.1% increase.
