Hong Kong markets opened higher on Friday, with benchmark Hang Seng up nearly 1% in morning trade, led mostly by tech stocks as China granted gaming licenses to a number of companies, potentially signaling its crackdown the gambling industry could slow down.

Alibaba’s shares are up over 5% in morning trade, while Meituan’s stock is up over 6%. JD.com shares also gained over 6%.

Macro News: China’s foreign ministry claimed president Xi Jinping did not criticize the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau after Xi was seen confronting the latter at the G20 summit over alleged leaks from an informal meeting they held on Tuesday, reported Reuters.

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Chinese regulators have asked banks to report on their ability to meet short-term commitments after the Chinese bond market quickly sold off and investors retreated from fixed income products. reported Bloomberg citing sources.

Company news: Alibaba reported second-quarter revenue growth of 3% year over year to $29.12 billion and fell short $29.45 billion consensus.

Tencent Holdings received approval for its first new major game title, “Metal Slug: Awakening”, since Chinese Regulators resumed licensing this year.

Top Winners and Losers: Alibaba Health Information Technology Limited and meituan were the top gainers on Friday’s Hang Seng after rising over 8% and 7% respectively. Henderson Land Development Company Limited and New World Development Company Limited are the biggest losers at over 2% and 1.5% respectively.

Global News: US futures traded mixed in Asia on Friday morning. Dow Jones futures fell 0.03% as Nasdaq…