China shares fall on central bank's prudent policy assurance; HK gains Aug

China shares fell on Tuesday, after the central bank vowed to maintain a prudent monetary policy, denting hopes for policy easing to bolster a slowing economy.

** Hong Kong stocks rose, aided by a rebound in tech shares.

** The CSI300 index fell 0.5% to 4,961.78 at the end of the morning session, while the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.1% to 3,489.74.

** The Hang Seng index added 0.3% to 26,359.72, while the Hong Kong China Enterprises Index gained 0.8% to 9,386.28.

** China's central bank said on Monday it would maintain the stability of monetary policy and would avoid a 'flood-like' stimulus.

China stocks up

** The wording disillusioned some investors who had hoped for more aggressive easing. On Monday, Wall Street banks including JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley cut their China growth forecasts after export growth slowed unexpectedly in July.

** Fresh COVID-19 cases in China also curbed risk appetite. The country reported 143 new cases on the mainland for Aug. 9, up from 125 cases a day earlier.

** China's chipmakers and real estate companies led the decline. The semiconductor sub index fell 2.33% while the real estate sub index finished down 1.89%.

** The defence subindex jumped 5.37%.

** In Hong Kong, technology shares led the gains, with the Hang Seng TECH Index moving up 1.37%.

** China's food delivery giant Meituan surged 6.35%, extending its strong rebound recently, as investors snapped up its shares battered by China's crackdown. Index heavyweight Tencent Holdings jumped 4.38%.