Hong Kong shares turn higher after a weak open; China banks, telecoms lead

HONG KONG (XFN-ASIA) - Share prices opened slightly lower but immediately moved into positive territory as China banks gained after more mainland lenders projected strong earnings growth for the first-half of the year. China telecom stocks, including heavyweight China Mobile, also supported the key index. China Merchants Bank was up more than 2.8 pct after projecting over 100 pct growth in first-half net profit, while China CITIC Bank was up more than 2.5 pct after forecasting over 150 pct rise in first-half earnings. ICBC projected more than 50 pct earnings growth last week. At 10.17 am, the Hang Seng index was up 101.59 points or 0.47 pct at 21,525.41, after opening down 21.12 points at 21,402.70. China Merchants Bank rose 0.65 hkd or 2.84 pct to 23.50, China CITIC Bank was up 0.11 hkd or 2.57 pct at 4.38 and Industrial and... [read full story]