Stocks in Hong Kong and China slipped on Wednesday, dragged by tech shares, as sentiment was dampened by lingering trade tensions between the world's two largest economies.
The benchmark Hang Seng Index dropped by 329 points, or 1.3 percent to 25,697 points by noon. The half-day market turnover was HK$128 billion.
The Hang Seng Tech Index declined 2.1 percent to 5,880 points at noon.
Gold stocks were among the biggest losers in morning deals, following plunging gold prices in global markets.
Shares of Laopu Gold (6181) plunged 7.8 percent following a share sale plan to raise HK$2.72 billion.
The precious metal has had a blockbuster run this year, climbing more than 50 percent as broader geopolitical and economic uncertainty, as well as expectations of US interest rate cuts, spurred demand for the safe-haven asset.
In the mainland, the Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite Index fell 0.44 percent to 3,899 points and the Shenzhen Stock Exchange Component Index declined 0.8 percent to 12,971 points at the midday close.
US President Donald Trump said he will discuss a lot of things with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in two weeks, but also conceded that the potential meeting may not happen.
Meanwhile, some global investment banks said they no longer expect major monetary stimulus measures in the remainder of this year.
"China could still be on track to hit its 'around 5 percent' growth target with the growth achieved in the first three quarters of this year," Citi analysts said in a note.
"With smaller room to cut for the People's Bank of China, we no longer expect a policy rate cut or reserve requirement ratio (RRR) cut in the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, the focus could be on deployment of fiscal and quasi-fiscal policies."
Analysts at Standard Chartered said they expect another 10-basis-point rate cut in the fourth quarter, with "risk that the rate cut may not happen this year."
Reuters and staff reporter
