Hong Kong stocks close 3.09% lower

Hong Kong stocks ended lower on Monday with the benchmark Hang Seng index falling 3.09 percent, or 776.55 points to end at 24,351.96 points.

Turnover totaled 116.25 billion HK dollars (about 14.98 billion U.S. dollars).

The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index fell 448.35 points, or 3. 84 percent, to close at 11,230.67.

Four sub-indices all lost ground, with the Commerce and Industry sub-index falling the most by 3.68 percent, followed by the Finance 2.86 percent, the Properties 2.52 percent and the Utility 1.76 percent.

Banking giant HSBC, which accounts for the largest weighting of the Hang Seng Index, fell 2.0 percent at 67.75 HK dollars, while its local unit Hang Seng Bank closed down 1.2 percent to 154.30 HK dollars. Local bourse operator HKEX went down 4.9 percent at 209. 20 HK dollars.

Local developers Hang Lung Properties lost 2.9 percent to 21.90 HK dollars. Henderson Land, another major developer in Hong Kong, declined 2.8 percent to 51.55 HK dollars, and Cheung Kong Holding, a powerful HK-based developer controlled by billionaire Li Ka- shing, decreased 2.9 percent to 111.30 HK dollars.

As for mainland-based financial stocks, China Construction Bank, the country's second largest bank which accounts for the third largest weighting of the Hang Seng Index, went down 2.8 percent to 6.28 HK dollars. ICBC, the world's largest bank by market value, was down 2.2 percent to 5.44 HK dollars. Bank of China slid 2.9 percent to 4.29 HK dollars.

PetroChina, the country's largest oil and gas producer, closed retreated 4.7 percent to 7.47 HK dollars. (1 U.S. dollar equals 7. 761 HK dollars)