The Hong Kong stock market has climbed higher in back-to-back sessions, collecting more than 750 points or 2.8 percent along the way. The Hang Seng Index now rests just above the 28,170-point plateau and it's looking at another green light on Wednesday.
The global forecast calls for mild upside, mostly on momentum amid a lack of catalysts, with crude oil prices limiting the upside. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian markets figure to open in similar fashion.
The Hang Seng finished sharply higher on Tuesday following gains from the financials, properties, casinos and insurance companies.
For the day, the index surged 618.91 points or 2.25 percent to finish at 28,173.21 after trading between 27,737.38 and 28,194.16.
Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China surged 7.93 percent, while Ping An Insurance soared 3.92 percent, China Life spiked 2.15 percent, BOC Hong Kong climbed 1.98 percent, New World Development jumped 1.96 percent, China Mengniu Dairy skidded 1.60 percent, Galaxy Entertainment advanced 1.45 percent, Lenovo Group gathered 1.16 percent, Sands China added 0.49 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) shed 0.34 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas gained 0.14 percent and CNOOC was unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is positive as stocks moved mostly higher on Tuesday, adding to the gains in the previous session as the major averages climbed to fresh record closing highs.
The Dow rose 84.07 points or 0.37 percent to 22,641.67, while the NASDAQ gained 15.00 points or 0.23 percent to 6,531.71 and the S&P was up 5.46 points or 0.22 percent to 2,534.58.
The gains reflected recent upward momentum, as traders seem optimistic about the economic outlook and the prospects for Republican tax reform. Nonetheless, trading activity was subdued ahead of Friday's jobs report from the Labor Department.
Crude oil futures inched lower Tuesday ahead of U.S inventories figures. However, the global supply glut may linger into 2018 as OPEC struggles to achieve compliance with its supply quota plan. WTI light sweet crude oil was down 16 cents at $50.43 a barrel.
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