Hong Kong Stocks Edge, Pound Falls Sharply

Hong Kong shares headed into the break on a positive note as investors tracked a rally on Wall Street, though trade frictions and the Huawei row tempered gains.

The Hang Seng Index added 0.3 percent, to 27,739.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite Index ended flat at 2,905 by the midday break after a volatile session while the Shenzhen Composite Index also barely moved, ending the morning trade at 1,548.

Tokyo went into the break 0.3 percent higher with Singapore, Taipei and Wellington also on the rise. But Sydney and Seoul turned negative.

Dealers are keeping a close eye on developments in the China-US trade tussle after the pair swapped tariff hikes and Donald Trump barred Chinese telecoms giant Huawei from the US market and put it on a sales blacklist.

Oanda senior market analyst Jeffrey Halley warned markets will be "vulnerable to headline bombs.

"Most notably, China has been very, very quiet on its intended retaliatory measures against the US. Make no mistake, they've not gone away, and any unexpected announcement by Beijing on that front could turn sentiment very quickly indeed," he said.

The pound was rooted at four-month lows after British MPs slammed Prime Minister Theresa May's latest plan to push through her Brexit plan. In Hong Kong, it slipped below the HK$10 mark and was trading at HK$9.98. (AFP)

______________________________