Hang Seng Index drops below 26,000 points by noon on Thursday

Hong Kong stocks fell below 26,000 points by noon on Thursday.

The benchmark Hang Seng Index plummeted 292 points or 1.1 percent, to 25,870 points at noon.

The half-day market turnover was HK$142.6 billion. 

The Hang Seng Tech Index declined by 2.3 percent to 4,849 points at noon.

In the mainland, the Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite Index lost 0.8 percent to 4,073  points and the Shenzhen Stock Exchange Component Index went down by 1.5 percent to 14,945 points at the midday close.