All departing flights were canceled for a second consecutive day in Hong Kong as hundreds of protesters blocked gates at the main terminal.
Operations were “seriously disrupted”, Hong Kong Airport said, stating the obvious on its website, and advising all passengers to leave the terminal buildings as soon as possible.
Earlier, chief executive Carrie Lam described the city as being on the verge of falling into “the abyss”. On Monday, the Global Times circulated a video of the Chinese People’s Armed Police assembling in Shenzhen in preparation for “large-scale exercises”.
Read more: Hong Kong Turmoil Hits Fragile Sentiment As Flights Canceled, China Cites ‘Terrorism’
Cathay Pacific slid again on Tuesday, closing at its lowest since 2009.
The Hang Seng fell more than 2%, leading losses among global benchmarks as investor concern mounts about the eventual economic fallout from the protests. Hang Seng profits are projected to contract for the first time in a decade this year, according to Bloomberg.
Volatility in Hong Kong shares is elevated and looks like it wants to make a run at December levels.
Meanwhile, the Hang Seng Properties Index sank into a bear market on Tuesday, after sliding another 2.3%.
Have a look at the MSCI Hong Kong versus the S&P:
Clearly, this is a train wreck.
It is just a matter of time before Xi moves in to put a stop to the unrest in the city, and as cynical as it may sound, you’ve got to think the US State Department wouldn’t be entirely disappointed if things turned especially ugly.
After all, the more brutal Xi’s eventual crackdown appears to the outside world, the more pressure on Beijing at a time when Washington is desperate to turn the screws on China.
That does not sound cynical to me, in fact it is more likely than not by a long shot.
When they pull out the screw driver, things will be taken apart and then put back together to provide perpetual dysfunction. It is what they day do, particularly under Republican regimes.