HONG KONG: Hong Kong stocks fell on Wednesday, tracking broader weakness in Asian markets, as oil prices rose,and AI-related and biotech shares led the decline.
At the close, Hong Kong benchmark Hang Seng slipped 0.6 percent.
The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index fell 0.6 percent while Hang Seng Tech lost 0.7 percent.
“China (markets) stayed subdued despite policy support, as weak consumer demand and mixed industrial data offset selective interest in technology,” Bassel Khatoun, head of research for Templeton Global Investments, said in a note.
Hong Kong-listed Chinese AI and tech firms were under selling pressure.
AI developer Minimax dropped 4 percent while chipmaker HuaHong Grace and tech giant Alibaba lost 3 percent each.
Biotech firms dropped 2.8 percent after a jump in the previous session.
Slowing economic activity pushed Hong Kong’s S&P Purchasing Managers’ Index down 0.3 point to 49.2 in September, adding to the weak market sentiment.
The index fell below the contraction-expansion threshold of 50 for a second straight month.