HSI above 28,000 despite Monday's 0.46% downturn

Although the Hong Kong stock market retreated 0.46 percent on Monday, it still stood firmly above 28,000 points after the city's benchmark stock index gauge last week soared to the highest level of the past three years, citing the city's strong economic fundamentals and other positive factors.

On Monday, the city's Hang Seng Index (HSI) slipped 131 points, or 0.46 percent, to 28,326 points. Despite the fact that the city's equity market only had three trading days last week due to the National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holidays, the HSI rallied to close at above 28,000 points, the highest level recorded since April 2015.

Bullish factors pushing up the HSI last week included the global risk-on sentiment amid US tax reform optimism, the mainland's rosy purchasing managers index data and the country's central bank decision on Sept 30 to cut the reserve requirement ratio (RRR) for bank lending to small firms, startups, and rural borrowers to be implemented next year.