SHANGHAI: Mainland China and Hong Kong stocks gave up earlier gains and ended lower on Tuesday, as investors cautiously monitored US President Donald Trump’s Asia tour, awaiting the meeting with his Chinese counterpart and a potential deal to de-escalate trade tensions.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index edged 0.22 percent lower to 3,988.22 points. Earlier in the session it rose past the key 4,000 points level for the first time since August 2015 to hit an intraday high of 4,010.73 points.
The blue-chip CSI300 Index lost 0.51 percent.
Non-ferrous metal stocks led the declines, with a sub-index tracking the industry dropping 3.23 percent, tracking losses in gold prices in global markets.
Gold prices extended losses on Tuesday to a near three-week low, ahead of global central bank policy announcements this week.
Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng Index fell 0.33 percent.
Investors are heading into this week’s trade talks between the US and Chinese leaders with a sense of deja vu, excited by the proclamations of a truce and apprehensive that the real deal may offer far less to celebrate.
Trump and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, are expected to meet in South Korea on Thursday.
“The Trump-Xi meeting later this week may show further signs of de-escalation, but the pattern of ‘escalate and de-escalate’ will continue in the future,” said Larry Hu, chief China economist at Macquarie.
“Both sides could walk back from the agreements, if something comes up in the future. Meanwhile, no competitive edge in trade war can last forever.”
Innovation and technological self-reliance will remain Beijing’s top priority in the next five years amid the US-China competition, Hu added.
The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) will “maintain its supportive monetary policy stance and implement moderately loose monetary measures,” Governor Pan Gongsheng said on Monday, reaffirming the central bank’s current policy stance.
The China Securities Regulatory Commission launched a new plan on Monday to streamline the qualified foreign investor regime, introducing measures to ease access requirements, improve operational efficiency and expand the investment scope.
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