(Bloomberg) -- Chinese stocks halted a recent rally as a jump in Covid infections and official comments defending Covid Zero kept reopening optimism in check.
The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index slipped as much as 1% early Tuesday, following gains of more than 10% over the past five days. A separate gauge on Chinese tech shares trading in Hong Kong fell more than 1%.
China’s potential exit from its Covid Zero strategy has been on top of traders’ mind recently, pushing up the nation’s assets even as official comments point to no imminent pivot and infections reach the highest in months. After enduring heavy losses this year, investors are betting authorities will have no choice but to relent on Covid restrictions that’s been hurting the economy.
The country’s leaders are considering steps toward reopening but are proceeding slowly and have set no timeline, the Wall Street Journal reported late Monday.