
Hong Kong stocks advanced for a fourth day with investors encouraged by positive news on Covid-19 vaccine development, while Asian markets climbed on optimism US officials will reach consensus on a financial aid package to spur the economy before the presidential election.
The Hang Seng Index gained 0.9 per cent to 24,785.67 as of 10.40am local time, set for its best winning streak in two weeks.
Wuxi Biologics, which has a 2.4 per cent weight on the benchmark, surged 11 per cent to HK$224 and was headed for the biggest gain in two years. Telecommunications stocks also rallied with China Unicom winning 7.2 per cent and China Mobile adding 2.2 per cent.
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Alibaba, the owner of this newspaper, also rose for a fourth day with a 0.2 per cent rise to HK$300, bringing its gain this month to 8.9 per cent as investors prepare for the listing of its affiliate Ant Group in Shanghai and Hong Kong.
Elsewhere, gauges in Japan, South Korea and Singapore rose by at least 0.3 per cent while the S&P/ASX 200 index in Australia was little changed. US officials at loggerheads over a trillion-dollar Covid-19 stimulus made progress on the relief package, according to news reports, and planned to resume talks and reach an agreement before the November 3 presidential election.
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