HK Hot Stocks: HKEx dented, Jiangxi Copper shines

HONG KONG, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Here are some stocks on the move in Hong Kong on Friday:

As of 0229 GMT, the blue-chip Hang Seng Index .HSI was down nearly 2 percent, as investors sold across the board after weak U.S. economic data fanned fears of a recession.

The index opened down 1.7 percent at 23,233.90.

STOCKS ON THE MOVE:

* Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (0388.HK: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), the most active stock for a second morning in a row, dropped a further 3.9 percent to HK$147.30 amid slumping turnover. Goldman Sachs downgraded the stock to neutral from buy, saying a slowing Chinese economy and a possible U.S. recession would likely dampen market sentiment [ID:nHKG18231].

* Most metal stocks firm

Jiangxi Copper (0358.HK: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) jumped 4.4 percent to HK$19.06 after copper prices hit 21-month highs.

Gold plays made further gains after gold prices set another record. Zijin Mining (2899.HK: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) climbed 1.4 percent to HK$10.34 and Lingbao Gold (3330.HK: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) edged up 0.6 percent to HK$4.77.

Steel plays were firm after South Korea's POSCO (005490.KS: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), the world's fourth-largest steel maker, said it was inclined to raise steel prices after a 65-percent surge in raw material iron ore prices.