Hong Kong national security law

The US Treasury Department could impose controls on transactions and freeze assets of Chinese officials and businesses for implementing a new national security law that would curtail the rights and freedoms of Hong Kong citizens.

Pessimism toward some Hong Kong real estate stocks, especially those of landlords, hasn’t been this extreme since the global financial crisis as investors worry about the future of the city.

The MSCI Hong Kong Index fell 6.8% on Friday, which would be its biggest slump on a closing basis since October 2008.

Stocks slid and U.S. equity futures retreated as investors braced for tensions between Washington and Beijing to escalate after China announced plans to impose a national security law on Hong Kong.

Beijing’s surprise plan to impose a national security law is spurring a new wave of selling.