HONG KONG — Hong Kong shares rose Wednesday for the fifth straight session, boosted by heavyweight HSBC and selected mainland Chinese financial stocks.

Blue chips were mixed as HSBC and China Mobile helped boost the index. HSBC rose 0.4 percent, extending recent gains as worries U.S. subprime exposure ease.

Selected Chinese financial companies jumped. China Life gained 4.1 percent, while China Merchants Bank rose 4 percent. Ping An Insurance advanced 1.5 percent ahead of its full-year 2006 results announcement.

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