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HK stocks end higher, China Telecom, techs rise

HONG KONG: Hong Kong stocks ended modestly higher on Thursday after a choppy day of quiet trade, with a spike in red chip computer maker Legend Holdings reviving interest in non-index technology plays.

Heavyweight China Telecom (Hong Kong) rose 4.3 percent to lead a small rally in blue chips and offset downward pressure from a weak Cable & Wireless.

The benchmark Hang Seng Index climbed 93.22 points or 0.55 percent to end at 16,936.81. Broader market turnover was a moderate HK$16.3 billion compared with on Wednesday's HK$21.1 billion.Investors were mostly sidelined on the main index as they waited for fresh news about the merger of C&W HKT and Richard Li's non-index Pacific Century CyberWorks.

"It was very quiet today. PCCW and C&W HKT are trading in a very narrow range," said Steve Lo, dealing director at OSK Asia Securities.

Heavyweights Cheung Kong (Holdings) and Hutchison Whampoa both part of the corporate empire controlled by Richard Li's father Li Ka-shing were hit by profit-taking, brokers said.

While China Telecom supported blue chips with a HK$3.00 rise to HK$73.00, it was red chip Legend Holdings that fuelled buying interest in the broader market.-Reuters