The Hong Kong stock market on Wednesday wrote a finish to the three-day losing streak in which it had surrendered almost 700 points or 2.7 percent. The Hang Seng Index now rests just beneath the 25,865-point plateau although it's likely to turn lower again on Thursday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is negative after the FOMC hiked interest rates and hinted at more next year. The European markets were up and the Asian bourses were down and the Asian markets are expected to follow the latter lead.
The Hang Seng finished modestly higher on Wednesday as gains from the casinos and properties were offset by weakness from the oil companies.
For the day, the index added 51.14 points or 0.20 percent to finish at 25,865.39 after trading between 25,784.09 and 25,925.99.
Among the actives, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) plummeted 4.69 percent, while CSPC Pharmaceutical plunged 2.74 percent, Hengan International tumbled 2.51 percent, CNOOC skidded 2.30 percent, Sands China soared 1.75 percent, AIA Group surged 1.74 percent, Galaxy Entertainment spiked 1.71 percent, WH Group jumped 1.69 percent, Sino Land climbed 1.60 percent, China Mobile advanced 1.00 percent, New World Development gathered 0.74 percent, China Life Insurance collected 0.73 percent, CITIC dropped 0.63 percent, Ping An Insurance shed 0.48 percent, BOC Hong Kong lost 0.34 percent,. Hong Kong & China Gas fell 0.25 percent and China Mengniu Dairy and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China were unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is brutal as stocks saw typically post-Federal Reserve decision volatility on Wednesday before ending sharply lower to their worst closing levels in over a year.
The Dow shed 351.98 points or 1.49 percent to finish at 23,323.66, while the NASDAQ lost 147.08 points or 2.17 percent to 6,636.83 and the S&P fell 39.20 points or 1.54 percent to 2,506.96.
The late-day sell-off on Wall Street came after the Federal Reserve announced its widely expected decision to raise interest rates by a quarter point. The central bank raised its target range for the federal funds rate by 25 basis points to 2.25 percent to 2.50 percent.
While the Fed also forecast fewer than previously estimated rate hikes next year, the central bank's tone was not as dovish as some traders had hoped. The Fed's median projection for the federal funds rate in 2019 was reduced to 2.9 percent from the 3.1 percent expected in September.
Crude oil futures ended higher on Wednesday, despite data showing a less than expected drop in U.S. crude stockpiles last week. Crude oil futures for January expired at $47.20 a barrel, gaining $0.96 or 2.1 percent. Crude futures for February ended up $1.57 or 3.4 percent at $48.17 a barrel.
Closer to home, Hong Kong will release November numbers for consumer prices later today, with forecasts suggesting an increase of 2.5 percent on year - slowing from 2.7 percent in October.
For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com
December 19, 2025 15:10 ET U.S. inflation data and interest rate decisions by major central banks were the highlights of this busy week for economics news flow. Employment data and survey results on the housing markets also gained attention in the U.S. In Europe, the European Central Bank and Bank of England announced their policy decisions and macroeconomic projections.