Alibaba Slips, JD Bucks Tech Slide: What's Dragging Hong Kong Stocks Today

Shares of U.S.-listed Chinese tech giants Alibaba Group Holding Ltd BABA, Tencent Holdings TCEHY, JD.Com JD, and Baidu Inc BIDU were a mixed bag in Hong Kong on Wednesday, a day after they snapped five straight sessions of losses.

While Alibaba, Tencent, and Baidu were lower, JD.Com gained about 3% during early trading hours.

What Happened: This came after the U.S.-listed Chinese tech stocks had a subdued closing in U.S. markets. 

The overall Hang Seng Index was trading in negative territory, down nearly 0.51% from its previous close. The Shanghai Composite Index was down 0.17%, while Japan's Nikkei 225 shed nearly 2%.

Strict COVID-19 lockdowns in Shanghai are forcing Hong Kong manufacturers to cope with higher costs, delays, and backlogs as Chinese port activity fell below levels seen during the first coronavirus outbreak in 2020, according to Bloomberg. 

The state-run Xinhua News Agency reported that Chinese Premier Xi Jinping, following a meeting of the Central Committee for Financial and Economic Affairs, has urged increased fiscal spending and widening funding channels.

Company In News: Tech giant Baidu, in a white paper issued by the company, said it ranked first in terms of patent applications related to deep learning and autonomous driving across the globe last year. 

Music streaming service NetEase's Cloud Music unit said it had initiated legal proceedings against Tencent Music Entertainment TME, alleging unfair competition, Reuters reported.

A new report by JD's Consumption and Industry Development Institute showed that sales of yoga and dance-related products have increased at a remarkable rate in recent months, sending the e-commerce giant's stocks nearly 3% higher in an otherwise volatile market.