Stocks in Hong Kong ended in positive territory before the National Day holiday on Wednesday as the Hang Seng Index rose 0.37 percent to close at 24,613 while the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index rose 0.50 percent, and the Hang Seng Tech Index rose 0.10 percent.

Up north, the Shanghai Composite index closed up 0.3 percent while the CSI 300 Index also rose 0.3 percent at market close.

Despite the market posting modest gains, Chinese blue chips were stuck near one-year lows on Wednesday even after Beijing unveiled a series of credit and mortgage support steps on Tuesday.

The People's Bank of China ⁠lowered its one-year pledged supplementary lending (PSL) rate by 25 basis points to 1.5 percent to support infrastructure investment.

Authorities also raised re-lending quotas for tech firms and small businesses, and, battling a long housing downturn, introduced mortgage subsidies for eligible first-time buyers.

"The policy is in the right direction. But the government has refrained from strong stimulus, unveiling measures that are not adequate," said Charles Wang, chairman of Shenzhen Dragon Pacific Capital Management.

Market sentiment was also cautious ahead of the week-long National Day holiday starting on Thursday.

Liquidity has thinned significantly, with combined turnover on China's Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges dropping to 1.41 trillion yuan on Tuesday, its lowest level since July 2025. (Reuters/Xinhua)


Edited by Tony Sabine