Benzinga | Oct 18, 2021 12:04AM EDT

Alibaba, JD Fall In Hong Kong On Regulatory Worries, Nio Rivals Xpeng, Li Auto Continue To Surge

Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA), JD.Com Inc. (NASDAQ:JD), Baidu Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU) and Tencent Holdings Inc. (OTC:TCEHY) fell in Hong Kong on Monday, while Xpeng Inc. (NYSE:XPEV) and Li Auto Inc. (NASDAQ:LI) traded higher.

What's Moving Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba's shares traded 0.5% lower at HKD 160.30 in Hong Kong, while technology company Baidu's shares have lost 2.0% to HKD 157.70 and e-commerce company JD.Com's shares are down 0.6% to HKD 312.80.

Tech conglomerate Tencent Holdings' shares have fallen 1.9% to HKD 486.00.

The tech stocks are trading lower as China's industry regulator plans to deepen scrutiny on internet companies as part of a six-month campaign, the South China Morning Post reported.

See Also: How To Buy Xpeng Motors (XPEV) Stock

Meanwhile, electric vehicle maker Xpeng's shares have risen 4.6% to HKD 165.40 and Li Auto's shares traded 1.7% higher at HKD 118.10.

Shares of the EV makers are rising after it was reported that peer Nio Inc. (NYSE:NIO) will be able to double annual production capacity at its Hefei facility in 2022 following completion of a phased upgrade, citing a report by cnEVpost.

Hong Kong's benchmark Hang Seng Index retreated after a positive start and was down 0.5% at the time of writing. The index closed almost 1.5% higher on Friday.

Why Is It Moving? The Hang Seng Index drifted lower on Monday after data showed that China's economy grew at the weakest pace in a year in the third quarter as the country grappled with power shortages and a slowdown in property sales.

China's gross domestic product (GDP) grew 4.9% in the July-September period from a year earlier, slowing from 7.9% in the preceding quarter.

China is able to contain the risks posed to its economy by embattled property developer China Evergrande Group's (OTC:EGRNY) debt crisis, People's Bank of China Governor Yi Gang said, as per a report by Bloomberg.

Shares of Chinese companies closed higher in U.S. trading on Friday as the major averages in the U.S. closed firmly positive.

Alibaba's shares closed 0.7% higher, while Nio's shares ended higher by 3.9%.

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