ADRs End Higher; China Unicom Trades Actively

International stocks trading in New York closed higher Wednesday.

The BNY Mellon index of American depositary receipts gained 0.4% to 144.48. The European index increased 0.33% to 134.83. The Asian index improved 0.44% to 167.50. The Latin American index rose 0.95% to 241.41. And the emerging-markets index increased 0.51% to 309.67.

China Unicom Hong Kong Ltd. (CHU) was among those with ADRs that traded actively.

China Unicom said Wednesday that its Shanghai-listed parent company is seeking to sell shares to a group of strategic investors, including Chinese internet and e-commerce majors Tencent Holdings Ltd. (TCEHY) and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (BABA). The total consideration for the deal, which is part of Beijing's plan to introduce private investors to its state-owned enterprises, will be around 78 billion yuan ($11.68 billion), the Hong Kong-listed mobile operator said after releasing its financial results. Other strategic investors in the private offering, which is subject to approval from regulators and shareholders, include China Life Insurance Co. (LFC) and Baidu Inc. (BIDU). The investors would hold a combined stake of around 35% in Shanghai-listed China United Network Communications Ltd. China Unicom rose 3% to $15.67; Alibaba rose 1% to $159.50; China Life Insurance edged up 0.3% to $15.24; and Baidu improved 0.4% to $226.14. Tencent, which trades over the counter, rose 6% to $43.36.

ADRs in BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP) rose nearly 3% to $41.17, a day after Elliott Management Corp. disclosed it has increased its holdings in the resources giant and signaled company officials may be more receptive to sweeping changes it has been seeking. Elliott, which has campaigned for BHP to exit its U.S. onshore oil-and-gas assets and to collapse its dual-listed structure, said it now holds 5% of BHP's London shares.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 16, 2017 17:41 ET (21:41 GMT)