SHANGHAI: Chinese A-shares fell on Tuesday, weighed by industrial and consumer staple firms, after data showed a slowdown in industrial profit growth in September. At the midday break, the Shanghai Composite index was down 0.37% at 3,239.03 points.

China's blue-chip CSI300 index fell 0.33%, with its industrial sector sub-index down 0.87%. Financial shares slipped 0.71% and the consumer staples sector dipped 0.19%. Profits at China's industrial firms rose 10.1% in September year-on-year but growth slowed from August, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Tuesday, as factory-gate deflation and rising raw materials costs undercut a recovery in the manufacturing sector.

The smaller Shenzhen index fell 0.22%, while the start-up board ChiNext Composite index gained 0.54% and Shanghai's tech-focused STAR50 index added 1.01%. Chinese H-shares listed in Hong Kong dropped 1.53% to 9,970.88, while the Hang Seng Index fell 1.16% to 24,629.93.

This year, the Shanghai stock index is up 6.2% and the CSI300 has risen 14.1%, while China's H-share index listed in Hong Kong has fallen 10.7%. Shanghai stocks have risen 0.65% this month.