Shanghai stocks close at 10-year high as Iran conflict boosts energy and gold shares; HK drops

Shanghai stocks closed at a 10-year high on Monday, bucking regional weakness in the wake of the Iran conflict as investors snapped up energy, gold and defence shares.

Mainland ​sentiment was supported by expectations that Beijing may step in to steady markets ahead of a parliamentary meeting later this week. However, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, which is more susceptible to global market volatility, fell ‌more than 2% ⁠to a ⁠two-month low. The U.S. and Israel launched major strikes on Iran over the weekend, killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali ​Khamenei, escalating geopolitical tensions and deepening global economic uncertainty. The Shanghai Composite Index ended the session up 0.5% at ​4,182.6 points, the highest close since June, 2015. China’s blue-chip CSI300 Index gained 0.4%.

Kevin Liu, a strategist at CICC Research, said the impact of any geopolitical conflict would likely ​be fleeting.

“It does not alter the original trend determined ⁠by macro fundamentals,” ‌Liu said. Investors piled into Chinese energy companies after oil prices surged, sending the shares of oil giants CNOOC , PetroChina and China Petroleum & Chemical Corp sharply ⁠higher.

Energy stocks in Hong Kong also shot up.

A dramatic increase in oil prices would curb overall risk appetite as the prospect of higher inflation makes it more difficult for the U.S. Federal Reserve to cut rates, said Jeff Mei, chief operating officer at crypto exchange BTSE.

He added, “Investors flock towards safe-haven assets such as gold in times of conflict.”

An index tracking Chinese gold stocks jumped 7%, while defence stocks also rose sharply. Shipping stocks rose, with shares in Nanjing Tanker, COSCO ‌Shipping and China Merchants Energy Shipping all surging by their 10% daily limit.But shares in Chinese air carriers and tourism firms slumped due to ​conflict-related travel disruptions.

Shares ​of Air China ⁠fell more than 3% in both Shanghai and Hong Kong. Mainland-listed shares of China Southern Airlines and China Eastern Airlines also tumbled.

In Hong Kong, energy was the only major sector in positive territory. ​Tech, healthcare and tourism were among the biggest decliners.

Crypto ETFs listed in Hong Kong fell.

“If the conflict intensifies, we can expect gold to remain strong while bitcoin becomes more vulnerable,” said Jeff Ko, chief analyst at crypto exchange CoinEx.

While Beijing frequently stepped in to support onshore markets, Hong Kong, by contrast, “often acts as a shock absorber,” he added.