Hong Kong stocks reversed course to end higher on Thursday on fresh comments from China that Beijing and Washington were in discussions and would try to resolve the year-long trade dispute between both economies. The Hang Seng index ended up 0.3% at 25,703.50, while the China Enterprises Index closed 0.1% higher at 9,992.64.

The top gainers among H-shares were China Cinda Asset Management Co Ltd, which ended up 6.67%, followed by China Huarong Asset Management Co Ltd, which closed 5.41% firmer and CSPC Pharmaceutical Group Ltd, which ended 4.52% higher. The three biggest H-shares percentage decliners were New China Life Insurance Co Ltd, which ended down 6.11%, Dongfeng Motor Group Co Ltd, which closed 2.59% lower and Huatai Securities Co Ltd, which ended down by 2.09%.

Copyright Reuters, 2019