Hong Kong stocks close higher

Hong Kong's stock market ended higher Friday with the benchmark Hang Seng Index up 1.75 percent to close at 25,976.79 points. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index gained 1.62 percent to end at 9,079.35 points, and the Hang Seng Tech Index rose 1.87 percent to end at 5,638.05 points.

China's foreign trade continued to expand steadily in the first 11 months of the year despite mounting global uncertainties, said He Yadong, spokesman for the Ministry of Commerce (MOC), at a press conference in Beijing on Thursday.

He said that despite a complex and challenging external environment, China's goods trade rose 3.6 percent year on year during the January-November period, demonstrating stable performance and improved quality.

He noted that the global landscape for trade and investment has become increasingly volatile, with significant adjustments taking place across industrial and supply chains, posing challenges for all countries, including China.

"Going forward, we will work with local authorities and relevant departments to implement various policies of stabilizing foreign trade, promote market diversification, and strengthen service support for enterprises in exploring markets; expand intermediate goods trade and green trade to spur the innovative development of trade; advance the balanced growth of imports and exports and continue building the 'export to China' brand; and enhance the functions of trade promotion platforms, supporting the development of new business forms and models such as cross-border e-commerce and overseas warehouses; and improve the quality and efficiency of foreign trade," said He.