HK Stock Market Move | Hong Kong bank stocks under pressure, HSBC HOLDINGS (00005) fell over 3%, STANCHART (02888) fell over 2%

Hong Kong bank stocks are under pressure and declining. As of the time of writing, HSBC Holdings (00005) fell by 3.13% to 123.9 Hong Kong dollars, while Standard Chartered (02888) dropped by 2.28% to 162.8 Hong Kong dollars. On the news front, recent concerns over the private credit market and the situation in the Middle East have impacted the performance of HSBC and Standard Chartered. A report from JPMorgan Chase pointed out that assuming credit losses related to the Middle East exposure lead to increased impairment charges, additional credit costs due to global macro risks, along with profit losses from Middle East operations and private credit exposure losses, it is expected that it could lower HSBC's earnings per share and tangible equity return by 10% and 180 basis points respectively by 2026, while Standard Chartered's earnings per share and tangible equity return could potentially decrease by 14% and 184 basis points. Standard Chartered is more sensitive to Middle East conflicts while HSBC has a larger exposure to private credit risks.