HONG KONG: Hong Kong shares started the week with a hefty loss owing to a sell-off in Chinese tech giants, while strong US jobs data dealt a blow to hopes for an early interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve.

The Hang Seng Index tumbled 1.88 percent, or 310.88 points to 16,224.45.

The Shanghai Composite Index shed 1.42 percent, or 41.65 points, to 2,887.54, and the Shenzhen Composite Index on China’s second exchange dropped 1.88 percent, or 33.34 points, to 1,740.08.