Stock Markets on November 18

Ongoing demonstrations in Hong Kong continue to influence the stock markets. The protests, which started several months ago affected the local economy. Hong Kong is one of the most important financial hubs in the world. However, violent protests and tensions in the city raised fears about the state of affairs in Hong Kong.

Last week on Friday, the government of Hong Kong stated that the local economy is in danger as it may decrease by 1.3% in 2019. It is important to mention that if this is going to happen, this would be the first annual recession since 2009.

 Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell by 4.8% last week. It was the biggest weekly drop since August.

On November 18, the Hang Seng Index increased by 1.4%. It is the best daily gain in two weeks. However, due to losses sustained last week, it will take time until the index will be able to regain its position.

The Chinese social media and gaming giant Tencent has a good day as its shares increased by 3.1%. On Friday, the media reported that Tencent was interested in acquiring a minority stake in Universal Music Group (UMG). The ongoing negotiations between Tencent and the owner of UMG, which is Vivendi started several months ago. In August the owner of UMG confirmed that it was talking to Tencent.

The Shanghai Composite Index was able to strengthen its position as the index gained 0.5%.

In Japan, Nikkei’s 225 index, increased by 0.5%. South Korea’s Kospi index declined by nearly 0.1%.

U.S. stocks on Monday

In the U.S., the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 33.4 points or 0.12% to 28,038.29. Another major stock index, the S&P 500 added 3.26 points or 0.10% to 3,123.72.

The Nasdaq Composite added 15.72 points or 0.18% to 8,556.55.

The market welcomed the news that U.S. authorities approved an extension for U.S. companies. It means that U.S. companies will have the opportunity to sell their parts and components to the Chinese tech giant Huawei. This news will affect the stock markets.