Hong Kong Stocks Extend Losses As HSBC Disappoints

Hong Kong stocks opened lower Tuesday, extending their fall from the previous session, with HSBC Holdings PLC a major force in dragging down the market. The Hang Seng Index lost 0.2% in early moves, after a 0.3% drop the day before, while the mainland-China tracking H-share index rose 0.4%. The difference between the two benchmarks could be attributed to HSBC -- the top-weighted component on the Hang Seng Index -- which fell 0.5% after posting disappointing third-quarter earnings overnight. Weakness in some of the property names, after scattered gains in the previous session, also helped keep the market in losses, with Wharf Holdings Ltd. down 1.8%, Hang Lung Properties Ltd. down 1.5%, and Agile Property Holdings Ltd. off 0.9%, though China Vanke Co. bucked the trend with a 1.2% advance. With front-month Nymex crude futures falling below $79 for the first time in more than two year, energy shares slipped, as PetroChina Co. eased 0.2% lower, and Cnooc Ltd. lost a heftier 1.3%. Still, the energy prices helped fuel more gains for the airlines, with Air China Ltd. up 1.6%, China Southern Airlines Co. up 2.1%, and Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. adding a milder 0.4%. Also among the gainers, Great Wall Motor Co. rallied 5.8% on the back of solid October production and sales numbers.