Hong Kong shares finished higher on Tuesday following the Chinese central bank’s decision to loosen some restrictions on real estate lending.

The Hang Seng index rose 0.2 per cent to 24,900.89, while the China Enterprises index gained 0.3 per cent to 12,346.09.

Total trading volume of companies included in the HSI index was 2.6 billion shares.

Earlier, mainland Chinese bourses hit fresh seven-year highs, helped by rises in property and banking stocks after Beijing eased lending policies to bolster the struggling real estate market.

Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng index had risen 0.5 per cent in the morning, touching a six-month-high, with Hong Kong-listed Chinese companies climbing on signs of fresh money inflows from the mainland. The index gave up some of those gains in the afternoon.

Trading volumes on a landmark share trading link between mainland China and Hong Kong have also surged to a record high as Beijing takes further steps to boost cross-border trading flows, boosting Hong Kong equities.

On Monday, nearly a quarter of the daily quota was taken up on the Hong Kong-bound leg, the highest since the scheme was launched.

comment COMMENT NOW