HONG KONG (XFN-ASIA) - HSBC Holdings Plc shares rebounded strongly as
worries about the health of the US financial system eased.
At 10:46 am, shares of HSBC were trading up 3.20 hkd or 2.84 pct at 116.0,
recouping some of its more than 5 pct losses in the previous three sessions.
Hong Kong Monetary Authority chief executive Joseph Yam said yesterday that
Hong Kong banks have miniscule holdings of bonds issued by US mortgage finance
companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and are unlikely to feel any significant
impact from their financial troubles.
As far as the HKMA knows, investments in bonds issued by Fannie Mae and
Freddie Mac account for 0.1 pct of the total assets of local financial
institutions, Yam told reporters.
Better-than-expected quarterly results announced overnight by Wells Fargo &
Co, the fifth-largest US bank, also helped HSBC, which has large US operations.
Wells Fargo said its second-quarter earnings fell 22 pct as more customers
failed to repay loans. But the company's results beat Wall Street expectations
and Wells Fargo shares rose 32.8 pct overnight after the bank increased its
dividend by 10 pct.
Other local banks were also higher, with Hang Seng Bank up 2.60 hkd or 1.82
pct at 145.80, Bank of East Asia up 1.25 hkd or 3.59 pct at 36.05 and Standard
Chartered up 4.40 hkd or 2.06 pct at 217.60.
China banks were also sharply higher, with China Construction bank up 0.24
hkd or 3.85 pct at 6.48, Bank of China gaining 0.10 hkd or 3.02 pct to 3.41 and
Bank of Communications up 0.35 hkd or 3.83 pct at 9.50.
(1 usd = 7.8 hkd)
george.ng@xfn.com
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xfngn/xfjamesa
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