Hong Kong stocks reversed losses on speculation that the government may ban face masks at public gatherings as a way to deter protesters.

The Hang Seng Index closed 0.3 per cent higher, reversing a loss of as much as 0.9 per cent. Local news channel TVB reported that the government will use the Emergency Regulations Ordinance to enact the ban after a special meeting of the city’s Executive Council on Friday, citing people it didn’t identify.

The report "at least gives investors some hope that it could be a way to cool down the protests,” said Steven Leung, executive director at Uob Kay Hian (Hong Kong) Ltd. “Some protesters might think twice if they can be identified during protests. That’s why we see local shares rallying, such as developers and retailers.”

Months of unrest have hit Hong Kong’s economy hard, with retail sales falling by a record amount in August. Already reeling from a tumbling yuan and the Sino-U.S. trade dispute, the often violent street protests have added pressure on earnings for some of Hong Kong’s biggest companies.

A gauge of property stocks rose 0.2 per cent after falling as much as 1 per cent, with China Overseas Land & Investment Ltd. and Country Garden Holdings Co. among the biggest gainers. MTR Corp., which has seen its facilities targeted by protesters, rose 2.3 per cent. Link Reit, a shopping mall operator which fell as much as 1 per cent earlier in the day, finished the day unchanged.

Casino stocks rallied. Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd. gained 2.7 per cent and Sands China Ltd. climbed 1.8 per cent, among leading gainers on the Hang Seng Index, after data showing that visitors to Macau rose nearly 9 per cent on year during Oct. 1-2.