Stimulus hopes boost China and Hong Kong Asian shares gained ground on Tuesday, with a particularly strong showing in Hong Kong as financial and infrastructure stocks were boosted by hopes of government support. On Tuesday, premier Wen Jiabao said Beijing would increase its efforts to stimulate growth after annual GDP fell to 7.6 per cent in the second quarter, its lowest rate in three years. Infrastructure stocks in China and Hong Kong were boosted after Beijing said it was raising its railway investment this year 9 per cent to Rmb448.3bn ($70bn). China Railway Group jumped 5.9 per cent to HK$3.40 in Hong Kong and rose 2.3 per cent to Rmb2.62 in Shanghai. China Railway Construction Group rose 4 per cent to HK$6.71 and 3.1 per cent to Rmb4.65. Property stocks in Hong Kong were among the best performers on hopes that government stimulus efforts would also provide some support to real estate prices. Cheung Kong rose 4.2 per cent to HK$100.80, Sino Land added 3.5 per cent to HK$12.96 and Hang Lung Properties gained 3.4 per cent to HK$27.10. Earnings helped lift the insurance sector after stronger than expected results on Tuesday from China Pacific and China Life . China Life's was the second-biggest gain on the Hang Seng in Hong Kong, up 3.6 per cent to HK$21.65. In Shanghai, its shares were up 2.1 per cent to Rmb18.90. China Pacific gained 3.5 per cent to HK$26.65 and 1.2 per cent to Rmb22.72. Ping An Insurance gained 3.5 per cent to HK$62.10 and 1.7 per cent to Rmb44.29. The Hong Kong's Hang Seng index ended up 1.8 per cent at 19,455.33, while the Shanghai Composite gained 0.6 per cent to 2,161.2. Overall, the FTSE Asia Pacific index was up 0.5 per cent to 224.86 in late trade. Hopes of Chinese stimulus also boosted shares in Sydney, although Rio Tinto lagged behind some strong gains in the mining sector after it reported flat second-quarter iron ore production growth. Its shares were down 0.1 per cent at A$54.44. Chief rival BHP Billiton added 0.1 per cent to A$30.79. Shares in gold mining and exploration companies were higher, with Perseus Mining and Evolution Mining among the best performers - up 5.3 per cent to A$2.57 and 5 per cent to A$1.47, respectively. The S&P/ASX 200 index was up 0.9 per cent to 4,140.8.