Mainland China, Hong Kong shares rebound; property stocks jump

SHANGHAI, Feb 25 (Reuters) – Mainland China and Hong Kong shares rose on Thursday, as a strong show by property firms helped the markets recover from a sharp drop in the previous session, while investors digested news about Hong Kong raising stamp duty on stock trading.

** The stamp duty paid on listed stock trades by both buyers and sellers will be increased to 0.13% from the current 0.1% on Aug. 1.

** The hike could create some short-term negative impact on stock trading, Yang Lingxiu, chief strategist at Citic Securities, said. But, he added, economic recovery and listings of new-economy companies and some U.S.-listed Chinese firms’ secondary listing would continue to attract fund inflows into Hong Kong.

** At the midday break, the Shanghai Composite index was up 1.07% at 3,602.28, while China’s blue-chip CSI300 index was up 1.43% to 5,512.23.

** Chinese H-shares listed in Hong Kong rose 2.63% to 11,812.05, while the Hang Seng Index gained 2.15% to 30,356.40.

** The smaller Shenzhen index added 0.4%, the start-up board ChiNext Composite index was up 0.56% and Shanghai’s tech-focused STAR50 index was down 0.37%.

** Property shares were among the top gainers after some research notes by local brokerages said the valuation of the real estate sector was at a historically low level. A gauge that tracks the sector jumped 9.22%.

** Aiding sentiment, Wall Street gained overnight after U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell reaffirmed interest rates would stay low for a long time.

** Around the region, MSCI’s Asia ex-Japan stock index was weaker by 1.71%, while Japan’s Nikkei index was up 1.62%.

** So far this year, the Shanghai stock index is up 3.7% and the CSI300 has risen 5.8%, while China’s H-share index listed in Hong Kong is up 10%. Shanghai stocks have risen 3.42% this month.

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