Hong Kong Stocks Seesaw As China's Legislature Opens

Hong Kong stocks swung between small gains and losses Tuesday morning, following a previous advance triggered by the Chinese central bank's interest-rate cut over the weekend, as investors cautiously awaited key policy announcements from the annual meeting of the nation's top legislative and consultative bodies. The Hang Seng Index was flat about half an hour into trade, while the Shanghai Composite Index declined 1.4%. Chinese banks and property shares retreated broadly, as China Minsheng Banking Corp. dropped 1.8%, China Merchants Bank Co. shed 1.1%, Bank of Communications Co. lost 0.9%, and Bank of China Ltd. fell 0.7%. Leading property developers China Vanke Co. and Poly Property Group Co. retreated 1.6% each, and Hang Seng Index components China Overseas Land & Investment Ltd. and China Resources Land Ltd. dropped 0.6% and 0.5%, respectively. However, Macau gaming shares bounced back after recent heavy losses, as MGM China Holdings Ltd. jumped 2.6%, Sands China Ltd. climbed 2.1%, Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd. advanced 2%, Wynn Macau Ltd. rose 1.9%, and Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. added 0.9%. Oil stocks were broadly weak on the back of falling international crude prices: PetroChina Co. gave up 1.5%, Cnooc Ltd. pulled back 1.1%, and China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. (Sinopec) moved 0.6% lower. Infrastructure plays also declined, with China Railway Construction Corp. down 2.2%, and China Communications Construction Co. off 0.5%.