Hang Seng Index losses nearly 500 points on Tuesday

Hong Kong shares closed lower on Tuesday, losing most of the strong gains from the day before, after Wall Street experienced a broad selloff.

The benchmark Hang Seng Index fell 491 points, or 1.82 percent, to 26,590.

The full-day turnover amounted to HK$250.9 billion, with a net southbound inflow of HK$3.13 billion,

The Hang Seng Tech Index dropped by 2.13 percent to 5,270.

Pharmaceutical shares lagged the market, with Sino Biopharmaceutical (1177) slumping the most at 6.6 percent among blue chips. Hansoh Pharmaceutical (3692) and CSPC Pharmaceutical (1093) declined 6.4 percent and 5.2 percent, respectively.

In the tech sector, Tencent fell 3.3 percent, Alibaba (9988) slid 2.8 percent, and Meituan (3690) lost 4.2 percent.

Standard Chartered (2888) rose 3.1 percent after reporting robust profit last year.

China Tourism Group Duty Free (1880) dived 10.5 percent as the company said it lost part of the operating rights at Shanghai Pudong International Airport.

In mainland China, the A-share market rallied on its first trading day in the Year of the Horse. The Shanghai Composite Index went up 0.87 percent to 4,117, while the Shenzhen Component Index advanced 1.36 percent to 14,291.