Hong Kong, Shanghai Stocks Rise, Oil Prices Fall

Hong Kong shares finished the morning with big gains on Monday, in line with an Asia-wide rally fuelled by tentative hopes that the coronavirus may have peaked in some of the worst-hit countries.

The Hang Seng Index added 1.6 percent, to 24,221.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite Index added 0.7 percent to 2,828, while the Shenzhen Composite Index also added 0.7 percent to 1,748.

Most Asian markets rallied though oil prices sank with supply glut fears overshadowing output reductions.

Tokyo ended the morning more than 2 percent up, while Seoul, Taipei and Singapore were all more than 1 percent higher. Sydney added 0.6 percent.

On oil markets, WTI took another leg down, having endured a painful sell-off last week, with worries about storage and near non-existent demand overshadowing signs that some countries – including Kuwait and Algeria – are starting to slash production in line with a major agreement hammered out this month.

"Concerns surrounding rising global inventories, especially in the US with the coronavirus pandemic weighing on gasoline consumption, are pressuring oil prices," Kim Kwangrae, commodities analyst at Samsung Futures Inc, told Bloomberg News.

"While Opec has started to curb output, demand is still not being supported and that’s going to be a down factor for prices." (AFP)

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