Hong Kong Property Developers Rise Higher

In Asia Moday Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index remained unchanged at 21,977 and China's Shanghai Composite edged down 0.4% to 2,588. Markets in Japan were closed today in celebration of Respect for the Aged Day.

Hong Kong property developers shot up today after Sun Hung Kai issued a statement saying its net income for the year was HK$ 28 billion, according to Bloomberg. The company is controlled by the Kwok familly and was a major backer of Hong Kong's tallest building, the International Finance Centre, along with others including Henderson Land. The IFC, as it is known in Hong Kong, includes the IFC Mall and the swanky Four Seasons Hotel. The complex houses high-paying tenants like Bank of America, Macquarie, UBS and the Financial Times -- which enjoy sweeping views of Victoria Harbour. Perhaps they even caught a glimpse of Batman gliding onto their gotham-like roof during the filming of The Dark Knight.

Today Sun Hung Kai climbed 1.4% and other developers also rose. Sino Land jumped 2.2%, New World Development and Cheung Kong both surged 1.7%, Henderson Land advanced 1.5% and China Overseas added 1%.

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Cnooc, the Hong Kong-listed oil and gas exploration company, dipped 0.4% after China severed senior-level government relations with Japan. The move was prompted by Japan's refusal to release a Chinese fishing boat captain, taken captive after colliding with Japanese coast guard vessels near islands that both countries claim as their own. Cnooc, is already hard at work drilling for oil and gas just nearby and a prolonged dispute over the territory could hamper operations there, although Bloomberg reports that these wells account for less than 1% of the company's oil production and about 7% of its gas. Other natural resource and energy companies also closed lower with China Resource Power slumping 1.6%, China Shenhua losing 1%, HK & China Gas down 0.8% and China Oilfield Services dipping 0.7%.

In China commodities producers dragged the index lower. Jiangxi Copper tumbled 3.6%, Yunnan Copper Industry dropped 2.6% and Aluminum Corp. of China fell 1.3%. Even Zijin Mining, a firm specializing in gold production, slid 0.8%, despite gold hitting another record high, rising to $1,283 per ounce today. Shandong Gold Mining, rose 1.6% and Zhongjin Gold advanced 0.9%.

Chinese airlines performed well today with China Eastern Airlines rallying 5.6%, Air China shooting up 2.9%, and China Southern Airlines soaring 2.8%.

Among Chinese property companies, share prices fell as officials continue to apply pressure to lower the sky-high home prices in urban areas. Today Gemdale sank 3.1%. Gemdale develops properties like Imperial Garden in Xi'an, a community of modern townhouses and villas, and Gemdale Green World in Tianjin, which boasts a light rail for easy transportation. Poly Real Estate plunged 1.9%.

Shares in China's beer brewers continued to rise today as we approach the Mid-Autumn Festival to be celebrated this Wednesday night. Tsingtao Brewery shot up 5.2% and Beijing Yanjing Brewery advanced 2.9% in Shanghai. China Resources Enterprise, the Hong Kong-listed consumer company with major operations including the making and distributing of Snow Beer, China's most popular lager, reaped a 1.3% gain.