Hong Kong stocks rise as investors cheer COVID-19 vaccine progress

Hong Kong stocks rose on Tuesday, in line with gains in other parts of Asian markets, as investors cheered progress in the development of a COVID-19 vaccine. ** At the close of trade, the Hang Seng index was up 285.31 points, or 1.1%, at 26,301.48.

Hong Kong stocks rose on Tuesday, in line with gains in other parts of Asian markets, as investors cheered progress in the development of a COVID-19 vaccine.

** At the close of trade, the Hang Seng index was up 285.31 points, or 1.1%, at 26,301.48. The Hang Seng China Enterprises index fell 0.43% to 10,586.89. ** The sub-index of the Hang Seng tracking energy shares rose 9.3%, while the IT sector dipped 5.98%, the financial sector ended 3.31% higher and the property sector rose 4.8%.

** The top gainer on the Hang Seng was CNOOC Ltd, which gained 13.96%, while the biggest loser was Techtronic Industries Co Ltd, which fell 9.79%. ** Pfizer Inc's experimental COVID-19 vaccine is more than 90% effective based on initial trial results, the drugmaker said on Monday, a major victory in the war against a virus that has killed over a million people and battered the global economy.

** But tech shares tracked overnight weakness on the Nasdaq Composite, as companies that outperformed during the pandemic fell on news of Pfizer's vaccine progress. ** The Hang Seng tech index tumbled 5.2%, posting its worst day since July 16.

** Around the region, MSCI's Asia ex-Japan stock index was firmer by 0.92%, while Japan's Nikkei index closed up 0.26%. ** The yuan was quoted at 6.6087 per U.S. dollar at 0820 GMT, 0.29% firmer than the previous close of 6.628.

** At close, China's A-shares were trading at a premium of 40.64% over Hong Kong-listed H-shares.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)