HK stocks fall 0.83 percent as peripheral markets lose

Hong Kong stocks fell 170.95 points or 0.83 percent, to close at 20,527.73 points on Wednesday, as investors took cue from losses in peripheral markets and in Wall Street overnight. The benchmark Hang Seng Index traded between 20,576.84 and 20,485.08 points. Turnover totaled 40.89 billion HK dollars (5.27 billion U.S. dollars). The China Enterprises Index, which tracks 20 top mainland Chinese listings in Hong Kong, weighed down the Hang Seng index by losing 117 points, or 1.2 percent, to close at 9,628.4 points. Such performance largely resulted from losses in Chinese A-shares, as the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index slumped 1.24 percent, or 25.12 points, to finish at 2,004.17 in the day, which hit 44-month low. Shares of the ICBC, the world's largest bank by market value, lost 1.11 percent to 4.44 HK dollars. Bank of China fell 1 percent to 2.89 HK dollars. BOC Hong Kong, an unit of Bank of China, edged down 0.4 percent to end at 24.15 HK dollars. Other mainland financial heavyweights also suffered losses. China Life, one of the world's largest life insurers by market value, tumbled 2.21 percent to 22.15 HK dollars per share. Ping An Insurance, China's second largest insurer, edged down 0.68 percent to end at 58.1 HK dollars. Mainland-based oil companies also fell in the day. PetroChina, the country's largest oil and gas producer, fell 1.18 percent to close at 10.04 HK dollars. Sinopec, China's top refiner, closed at 7.1 HK dollars, down 0.84 percent. CNOOC, the HK-listed unit of China's National Offshore Oil Corp., was down 0.77 percent to end at 15.56 HK dollars. Mainland's major cement producer Anhui Conch Cement lost 3.65 percent to close at 23.75 HK dollars per shares. BYD Company, a Chinese battery and electric car maker, tumbled 9.8 percent to 13. 26 HK dollars. Shares of China Mobile, the world's largest mobile operator by subscribers, fell 1.1 percent to 85.35 HK dollars. Banking giant HSBC went down 1.4 percent to end at 72.7 HK dollars. Most Hong Kong-based property blue chips bucked the trend to rise in the day. New World Development gained 3.46 percent to end at 11.96 HK dollars, becoming the best-performing blue chip in the day. Sun Hung Kai Property edged up 0.6 percent to 111.6 HK dollars. Henderson Land, another major developer in Hong Kong, rose 2.31 percent to 55.35 HK dollars. Sino Land rose 1.83 percent to end at 14.46 HK dollars per shares.(1 U.S. dollar equals 7.75 HK dollars)