Hong Kong’s main stock index fell to its lowest level in nearly two months on Wednesday, weighed down by losses in overseas markets and weak economic data from China.
Growth in China’s investment, retail sales and factory output all missed forecasts in January and February and fell to multi-year lows, leaving investors with little doubt that the economy is still losing steam and in need of further support measures.
Global investor sentiment was also dampened by worries about an earlier US interest rate hike.
The Hang Seng index fell 0.8 per cent to 23,717.97 points. The China Enterprises Index also lost 0.8 per cent to 11,417.34 points.
Among the most actively traded stocks on Hong Kong’s main board were Ali Pictures, down 5.7 per cent at HK$2.17; Junyang Solar, down 1.4 per cent at HK$0.36; and Suncorp Tech, up 26.8 per cent at HK$0.52.
Total trading volume of companies included in the HSI index was 1.7 billion shares.