BEIJING - Stocks in China, including Hong Kong, rallied for a second day on Monday, after the ato prop up the beleaguered property sector and an easing of the country’s strict Covid-19 restrictions.
The rally comes after Beijing released a slew of measures on Friday aimed at boosting economic growth, which had been dragged down this year by the twin pressures of strict Covid-19 measures and aBeijing had announced that the quarantine period for international travellers will be cut to five days - down from seven - followed by three days of isolation at home.
The changes to China’s Covid-19 measures on Friday coincided with the release of a 16-point plan to promote the “stable and healthy development” of the troubled property market. The regulators have been clamping down on developers’ ballooning debt since 2020, causing the firms to plunge into a liquidity crisis, and the downfall of a number of formerly high-flying real estate giants, including Evergrande.Dr Larry Hu, chief China economist at financial firm Macquarie Group in Hong Kong, called the changes “significant”, particularly the loan extension.
“It’s still uncertain whether 16 measures are enough, but it’s clear that policymakers now have the courage to take more decisive actions,” Dr Hu said.