Real estate drags down Hang Seng with worst performance: analyst

China

Real estate drags down Hang Seng with worst performance: analyst

2026-08-31 22:09 Last Updated At：22:47

Real estate developer stocks performed worst on Monday's Hang Seng market, according to China Global Television Network (CGTN) analyst Timothy Pope.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index lost 0.07 percent on Monday to close at 25,566.99 points.

Pope attributed the fall of Hang Seng to BYD shares and real estate developer stocks.

BYD stock was down as much as 6.7 percent at one point and closed 5.2 percent lower. Results showed its Q2 profit up by 30 percent year on year, but the markets had been expecting 48 percent. Its revenue was down a bit, and the overseas business is doing much of the heavy lifting while the domestic Chinese market remains absolutely cutthroat.

"Real estate developer stocks were also a pain point in Hong Kong today after new rules announced on Friday by the Chinese government to stabilize the mainland property sector. These new rules will essentially require an overhaul of many developers' business models because they limit access to mortgage proceeds before properties are actually been completed, and the industry has basically run on the pre-sale model for decades. So this is a major shake-up, and we saw real estate was the worst-performing sector on the Hang Seng today. China Resources Land sank around 9 percent -- in fact four out of the five biggest decliners on the Hang Seng were property developers today," said Pope.

In terms of the following week, Pope said the listing of Shein, a well-known fast-fashion brand, would be the highlight.

"On the calendar for Hong Kong this week we have the Shein IPO tomorrow, that will get global attention. But this listing does leave the fast-fashion brand's valuation looking rather frayed at 26.5 billion U.S. dollars, compared with its 100-billion-dollar private valuation back in 2022," said Pope.

Rescuers continue search efforts at mudslide-stricken Gyirong Port

Rescuers and technicians are continuing their search for the missing in the hardest-hit areas of Gyirong Port on the China-Nepal border in southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region.

The deadly mudslide, triggered by the collapse of a high-altitude glacier on the Nepalese side, has left at least 16 people dead and 546 others missing in Gyirong, according to the regional government.

On Sunday afternoon, firefighters from the Xizang General Brigade of China's national comprehensive fire and rescue team joined the search with sniffer dogs, working alongside other rescue teams to locate those still accounted for.

At approximately 10:00 on Monday, firefighters, equipped with shovels and spades, conducted a shallow search in the core disaster area of the mudslide at Gyirong Port, along the border towards the upstream direction of the Gyirong Tsangpo River.

Two rescuers discovered baby supplies and trousers during their search, and used equipment such as human trace gas analyzers and enhanced radar life detectors to carefully investigate the surrounding environment and search for the missing people. On Sunday, members of the Immigration Management Emergency Rescue Team, carrying life detectors, drones, satellite phones, first-aid supplies, climbing ropes, escape boards, and other equipment, joined forces with firefighters and landed at the core disaster area of Gyirong Port by a military helicopter. They conducted a thorough search and rescue operation near the port's joint inspection building.