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Hong Kong Stocks Jump After China Trims Quarantine Period, Up More Than 7%

HONG KONG, CHINA – JANUARY 21: The Chinese and Hong Kong flags flutter as screens display the Hang Seng Index outside the Exchange Square complex, which houses the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX), on January 21, 2021 in Hong Kong, China. (Photo by Zhang Wei/China News Service via Getty Images)
China News Service | China News Service | Getty Images

This is CNBC's live blog covering Asia-Pacific markets.

Hong Kong stocks jumped more than 7% as Chinese state media reported Covid measures for travel will be eased. Shares in the Asia-Pacific also rose after the release of U.S. inflation data in October raised investor hopes that inflation has peaked.

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The Hang Seng index jumped 7.74% to close at 17,325.66. The Hang Seng Tech index surged 10.05% to close at 3491.70. In mainland China, the Shenzhen Component added 2.120% to end its session at 11,139.77, while the Shanghai Composite Index gained 1.69% to close at 3,087.29.

The Nikkei 225 in Japan closed up 2.98% at 28,263.57 and the Topix closed higher at 2.12% to stand at 1,977.76. The Kospi in South Korea ended up 3.37% at 2,483.16 and the S&P/ASX 200 in Australia climbed 2.79% to close at 7,158.

Overnight on Wall Street, stocks saw their biggest rally in two years after October's reading of consumer price index, which inched up just 0.4% for the month and 7.7% compared to last year, marking a lowest annual increase since January.

— Sarah Min, Alex Herring contributed to this report

Softbank posts quarterly profit, beating expectations

Softbank Group posted a quarterly net profit of 3.03 trillion yen ($21.4b) for its second quarter ending on September 30, beating Refinitiv estimates forecasting a 2.77 trillion yen net profit.

The company saw two consecutive periods of quarterly losses.

— Lee Ying Shan

Reopening stocks jump after China's eased Covid measures reported

Travel-related stocks listed in Hong Kong jumped shortly after Chinese state media reported the easing of its stringent Covid measures.

Shares of Cathay Pacific jumped almost 3%, Air China rose more than 2%, China Eastern Airlines rose 6% shortly after the announcement. China Southern Airlines also gained more than 3%.

Casino operators MGM China rose 8.41%, Wynn Macao rose 8.14%, Sands China jumped more than 11% and Galaxy Entertainment rose 7.57%.

Goldman Sachs in a note had previously forecasted greater China markets to see a 20% stock rally upon a full reopening.

— Jihye Lee

Chinese yuan at strongest levels in more than a month after China eases Covid measures

The Chinese yuan marked its strongest levels in more than a month after China announced some easing of its Covid measures.

The onshore Chinese yuan last traded at 7.0949 against the U.S. dollar, the strongest levels the currency has seen since late September.

— Lee Ying Shan

Oil prices rise more than 2% on back of China easing quarantine measures

Oil prices climbed more than 2% after China, the world's top oil importer, trimmed its quarantine period for international travelers by two days.

Brent crude futures rose 2.51%, to stand at $96.07 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate dropped 2.72% to $88.82 per barrel.

— Lee Ying Shan

China trims Covid quarantine time by two days

Chinese state media announced on Friday that the country will reduce quarantine time for international travelers by two days.

The revised rules state travelers will be required to stay at a quarantine facility for five days, shorter than the previous period of seven days, with a three day period of home observation.

— Evelyn Cheng, Lee Ying Shan

Correction: This post was updated to accurately reflect the duration of home observation to three days.

Earnings preview: Softbank to post net profit after seeing previous losses

Softbank is expected to post a net profit in upcoming quarterly earnings.

A median of forecasts predict the Japanese conglomerate to report an annualized net profit of 2.769 trillion yen ($19.5 billion) for its second quarter ending September 30, according to a Refinitiv survey.

The company posted two consecutive periods of quarterly net losses, with a 3.16 trillion yen net loss in the first quarter ending June 30 and a 2.1 trillion yen net loss in the fourth quarter ending March 30th.

— Lee Ying Shan

CNBC Pro: Analysts love these EV-related stocks — and give one upside of more than 100%

While automakers may be an obvious way to play the electric vehicle boom, the broader supply chain could also offer opportunities to investors.

A quarter of the 75 component stocks of the Global X Autonomous and Electric Vehicles ETF are tech names, with materials and industrials stocks, as well as auto stocks, making up the rest.

CNBC Pro screened the ETF for stocks that are buy-rated by the majority of analysts, with serious upside potential.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Zavier Ong

Hong Kong movers: Alibaba, JD.com, Tencent soar at open

Hong Kong-listed shares of Chinese technology companies popped in early Asia trade as the broader Hang Seng Index briefly added more than 6%.

Tech giants Alibaba and JD.com soared 7.94% and 10%, respectively. Tencent added 9.16%, and Meituan gained 12.26%.

— Lee Ying Shan

Currency check: Japanese yen, Chinese yuan at strengthened levels

The Japanese yen and Chinese yuan hovered around strengthened levels after the U.S. dollar index fell more than 1% overnight on a softer-than-expected inflation report.

The yen stood at 141.63 against the greenback, hovering around the strongest levels it's seen in two months before weakening past 150 in October.

The onshore yuan was around 7.18, also trading near its strongest levels to the dollar in nearly a month.

— Jihye Lee

CNBC Pro: Goldman Sachs says buy these stocks ahead of a $2.6 trillion China reopening boom

Chinese stocks could get a 20% boost if the country eases its zero-Covid policy, according to Goldman Sachs.

The investment bank named a number of stocks it expects to benefit from the reopening.

Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Zavier Ong

Asia-Pacific indexes pop at open after U.S. inflation report

Indexes in the Asia-Pacific sharply rose in early trade after the release of U.S. inflation data in October came in softer than expected

South Korea's Kospi popped more than 3%, while Japan's Nikkei 225 jumped 2.46%.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 added 2.89%.

— Lee Ying Shan

CNBC Pro: Bitcoin will fall further, says fund manager — until this one catalyst kicks in

Bitcoin is down by 75% from its all-time high, and a cryptocurrency exchange is on the brink of bankruptcy. In such an environment, a bond fund manager reveals the one thing that's needed for prices to rally.

Michael Howell from Cross Border Capital also said that due to the missing catalyst, there's an increased risk of investors getting in a "bit too early."

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Ganesh Rao

CPI rises less than expected

The U.S. consumer price index — a broad measure of inflation — rose by 0.4% in October from a month ago. On a year-over-year basis, the CPI rose 7.7%.

Economists polled by Dow Jones expected a month-over-month gain of 0.6% and a year-over-year advance of 7.9%.

Excluding volatile food and energy costs, so-called core CPI increased 0.3% for the month and 6.3% on an annual basis, compared to respective estimates of 0.5% and 6.5%.

— Jeff Cox

Dollar index on pace for worst day since Dec. 2015

The U.S. dollar slid Thursday against a basket of other currencies as investors cheered October's CPI report coming in weaker than expected, signaling that inflation may have peaked.

The dollar index shed 2%, putting it on pace for its worst daily performance since Dec. 4, 2015. If the index falls more than 2.1%, it will hit levels not seen since 2009.

This week, the dollar index is down 2.3% and is on pace for its worst week since March 2020.

—Carmen Reinicke

Biden to raise concerns about Xi's relationship with Putin ahead of G-20 summit

The U.S. government has introduced some of its most sweeping export controls yet aiming to cut China off from advanced semiconductors. Analysts said the move could hobble China's domestic chip industry.
Mandel Ngan | AFP | Getty Images
The U.S. government has introduced some of its most sweeping export controls yet aiming to cut China off from advanced semiconductors. Analysts said the move could hobble China's domestic chip industry.

President Joe Biden is expected to discuss Russia's war in Ukraine with Chinese President Xi Jinping next week in a face-to-face meeting.

The meeting between the two leaders, the first since Biden ascended to the U.S. presidency, will take place ahead of the G-20 Summit in Bali, Indonesia.

"I think the president will be honest and direct with President Xi about how we see the situation in Ukraine with Russia's war of aggression," a senior Biden administration official told reporters on a call.

"This is a topic that the president and President Xi have spoken about several times before. They spoke about it extensively in March in their video call and then they spoke about it again in July, so it's part of an ongoing conversation between the two of them," added the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

— Amanda Macias

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