EUROPEAN-listed companies exposed to Hong Kong underperformed sluggish stock markets yesterday, as civil unrest in the Chinese territory weighed on banks and luxury goods groups.
Banks in Hong Kong, including HSBC, Citigroup, Bank of China, Standard Chartered and DBS, temporarily shut some branches and advised staff to work from home or go to secondary branches.
Standard Chartered and HSBC lost at least 1.9 percent, making the two banks among the worst-performing stocks on the FTSEurofirst 300 index, which was down 0.4 percent.
The luxury goods sector was also affected by the unrest, since many top brands have targeted affluent Chinese clientele. Richemont fell 1.8 percent while LVMH retreated by 0.9 percent. – Reuters