HONG KONG: Hong Kong stocks opened Monday morning sharply lower, in line with a sell-off across Asia and following a painful end to last week for Wall Street as traders prepare for a big interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve next month.

The Hang Seng Index sank 1.71 percent, or 353.92 points, to 20,284.60.

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The Shanghai Composite Index also shed 1.71 percent, or 52.65 points, to 3,034.27, while the Shenzhen Composite Index on China’s second exchange lost 1.79 percent, or 34.26 points, to 1,879.85.