* HK->Shanghai Connect daily quota used 6.3%, Shanghai->HK daily quota used 8.1%
* HSI +0.6%, HSCE +1.0%, CSI300 +1.5%
* FTSE China A50 +1.5%
SHANGHAI, May 17 (Reuters) – Hong Kong stocks closed firmer on Monday, as tech and materials firms tracked Wall Street strength, while investors appeared to show scant reaction to China’s lacklustre economic data.
** The Hang Seng index rose 0.6%, to 28,194.09, while the China Enterprises Index gained 1.0%, to 10,503.84 points.
** Wall Street closed higher in a broad rally on Friday, an upbeat conclusion to whipsaw week of buying and selling as signs of a rebounding economy squared off against mounting inflation jitters.
** The position of the Hong Kong stock market for domestic investors’ gateway to overseas assets will not be changed for quite a long time, as most of leading tech firms that represent and benefit from China’s economic transformation and upgrade are listed in the Asian financial hub, Guosheng Securities said in a report.
** Leading the gains on Monday, the Hang Seng tech index and the Hang Seng materials index climbed 1.8% and 2.7%, respectively.
** Meituan, Baidu and Tencent ended up 4.2%, 3.9% and 3%, respectively.
** It’s a good time to buy Hong Kong stocks due to the still loose global liquidity conditions, yuan appreciation and continued mainland inflows to the island city, the brokerage added.
** Refinitiv data showed mainland investors on Monday purchased net 8.9 billion yuan ($57.31 billion) worth of Hong Kong stocks via the Stock Connect linking mainland and the city.
** Markets showed muted reaction to China’s data that showed factories slowed their output growth last month and retail sales significantly missed expectations as officials warned of new problems affecting the recovery in the world’s second-largest economy.
** Factory output grew 9.8% in April from a year ago, in line with forecasts but slower than the 14.1% surge in March, National Bureau of Statistics data showed on Monday. Retail sales, meanwhile, rose 17.7%, much weaker than a forecast 24.9% uptick and the 34.2% surge in March.
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