HK stocks end 2 pct lower

HONG KONG, March 18 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong stocks closed down 449.75 points, or 2 percent, at 22,083.36 on Monday.

The benchmark Hang Seng Index traded between 22,185.32 and 21, 997.72. Turnover totaled 78.23 billion HK dollars (about 10.08 billion U.S. dollars), down from Friday's 102.78 billion HK dollars.

The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index lost 226.19 points, or 2. 05 percent, to close at 10,794.70.

Three of the four sub-indices lost ground. The Finance sub- index lost most by dropping 2.4 percent, followed by the Commerce & Industry at 1.89 percent and the Properties at 1.68 percent, while the Utilities added 0.37 percent.

Banking giant HSBC, which accounts for the largest weighting of the Hang Seng Index, shed 2.26 percent to 84.15 HK dollars. Its local unit Hang Seng Bank plunged 3.41 percent at 124.7 HK dollars. Bank of East Asia, another Hong Kong's major bank, lost 1.27 percent to 31 HK dollars.

Chinese mainland lenders tumbled. China Construction Bank, the country's second largest bank which accounts for the third largest weighting of the Hang Seng Index, fell 2.23 percent to 6.13 HK dollars. ICBC, The world's largest bank by market value, lost 2.59 percent at 5.27 HK dollars. Bank of Communications, China's fifth biggest lender measured by assets, lowered 2.19 percent at 5.8 HK dollars. Bank of China lost 1.69 percent at 3.49 HK dollars.

Local developers closed lower. Cheung Kong Holding, a powerful HK-based developer controlled by billionaire Li Ka-shing, went down 1.68 percent to 111.1 HK dollars. Henderson Land, one of the major developers in Hong Kong, edged up 0.1 percent to 48.55 HK dollars. Hang Lung Properties dived 3.04 percent to 28.75 HK dollars. Sun Hung Kai Properties fell 0.94 percent to 105.2 HK dollars.

As for energy stocks, China's top refiner Sinopec lost 0.92 percent to 8.62 HK dollars. PetroChina, the country's largest oil and gas producer, went down 1.7 percent to 10.4 HK dollars. CNOOC lowered 1.36 percent at 14.46 HK dollars. (1 U.S. dollar = 7.761 HK dollars)

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