Hong Kong shares edged down on Friday, with investors locking in gains after a strong start in the new year and ahead of the reopening of China markets after a week-long Lunar New Year holiday.
Mainland China markets are due to resume trading on Monday.
By lunch break, the Hang Seng index was down 11.51 points or 0.05 percent at 22,555.27. The Hang Seng China Enterprises index rose 0.18 percent to 7,720.65.
The top gainer on the Hang Seng was Country Garden Holdings Co Ltd, which gained 3.61 percent, while the biggest loser was Xinyi Solar Holdings Ltd, which fell 3.53 percent.
Around the region, MSCI's Asia ex-Japan stock index was firmer by 0.11%, while Japan's Nikkei index closed up 0.08 percent.
Property developers, including Henderson Land and CK Asset, slipped as Hong Kong home prices dropped 15.6 percent in 2022, snapping 13 years of gain.
The sub-index of the Hang Seng tracking energy shares rose 0.7 percent, while the IT sector added 0.47 percent, the financial sector eased 0.42 percent and the property sector rose 0.35 percent.
The top gainers among H-shares were SenseTime Group Inc up 12.39 percent, followed by Country Garden and Longfor Group Holdings Ltd, which was up 3.51 percent.
The three biggest H-shares percentage decliners were Xinyi Solar, Lenovo Group Ltd, which fell 2.8 percent and Zhongsheng Group Holdings Ltd, down by 2.23 percent.
(Reuters)
