Markets were pushed and pulled by earnings reports and geopolitical events in another choppy week of trading. Most indices ended up higher and the blue-chip S&P 500 and technology focussed Nasdaq gained 3.3 and 2.6% respectively.
China was however a notable outlier and both the Shanghai Composite (-5.5%) and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index (-8.6%) fell sharply as President Xi Jinping consolidated his grip on the ruling Communist Party by appointing loyalists to key leadership positions at the 20th Party Congress.
Technology stocks, including Alibaba and Tencent, suffered double digit falls on concerns from many overseas investors that a new era of totalitarianism will see further regulation and censorship in the sector. Alibaba’s US listed stock is now $5 lower than its 2014 IPO price of $68.
TEAM plc (LON:TEAM) is building a new wealth, asset management and complementary financial services group. With a focus on the UK, Crown Dependencies and International Finance Centres, the strategy is to build local businesses of scale around TEAM’s core skill of providing investment management services.