HK stocks tread water ahead of PCE on Friday

　　The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index data is the Fed's favoured measure of inflation. Photo: RTHK

　　The Hang Seng Index fell 14.93 points, or 0.09 percent, to open at 17,454.43 points on Wednesday.

　　The US central bank's monetary policy is back in focus ahead of Friday's release of personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index data - the Federal Reserve's favoured measure of inflation.

　　Earlier in the US, attention turned to corporate earnings, with Google parent Alphabet and electric carmaker Tesla both reporting results after Wall Street closed on Tuesday.

　　In its earnings, Tesla reported a sharp drop in second-quarter profits due to the effect of price cuts, while Alphabet beat revenue and profit expectations as its cloud and search ads businesses thrived. (with additional reporting from Xinhua and AFP)