Hong Kong shares rise on expectations of Shenzhen-HK Stock Connect

Pulse Staff 07:17 - 08 May 2015

May 8 (Reuters) - Hong Kong shares rose on Friday, with small- and mid-cap stocks taking the lead, on expectations that regulators will soon launch a cross-boarder investment scheme that will potentially benefit the city's smaller companies.

China's state council, or cabinet, has given the green light to the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect, with the scheme likely to be announced as early as this month, Hong Kong's Economic Times reported on Friday.

The Hang Seng index rose 1.1 percent, to 27,577.34, but for the week, the index fell 2 percent.

The China Enterprises Index gained 2.0 percent, to 14,049.66 points.

Among the most actively traded stocks on Hong Kong's main board were CCT Land, up 7.7 percent to HK$0.03 Avic Joy Holdings, up 13.7 percent to HK$0.58 and Sino-Tech International, up 8.2 percent to HK$0.11.

Total trading volume of companies included in the HSI index was 1.9 billion shares. (Samuel Shen and Kazunori Takada; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)