FINV - Chinese financial stocks catch a bid after PBOC reduces lending rates again

A number of Chinese financial stocks were in the green in Monday afternoon trading after China's central bank trimmed its key lending rates just a week after it surprised with rate cuts.

American depository receipts of FinVolution Group ( NYSE: FINV ) +2.5% and KE Holdings ( NYSE: BEKE ) +3.5% rose the most among its peers. Futu Holdings ( NASDAQ: FUTU ) +1.2% shares also increased.

In an effort to stimulate the world's second-largest economy dented by extended Covid-related lockdowns as well as an ongoing property market slump, the People's Bank of China earlier trimmed its one-year benchmark lending rate to 3.65% from 3.7%, and its five-year rate to 4.3% from 4.45%.

"China cutting rates in an attempt to save its property market. But it's not going to work," economic commentator Tarric Brooker wrote in a Twitter post . "As hard as they may try they cannot stabilize a bubble at these heights, they can either pump it even higher by blowing more resources on it or it will pop."

Speaking of the country's real-estate meltdown, the PBOC earlier reportedly planned to lend out $29B in special loans to cash-strapped property developers for homes that have already been sold but have not yet been completed.

Meanwhile, China's broader stock market was mixed, with the Shanghai Composite ( SHCOMP ) +0.6% and the Hang Seng Index ( HSI ) -0.5% , as investors assess the PBOC's dovish monetary actions in a world now largely pursuing hawkish policy amid stubbornly high inflation.

Last week, (August 15) China surprises with rate cut as economic numbers remain weak .

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