Hong Kong shares end lower as virus surge hits risk appetite

Hong Kong shares closed lower on Tuesday, as property shares fell on worries around developer Evergrande, while fears of a hit to global growth from higher Delta variant coronavirus cases hurt sentiment. ** The Hang Seng index ended down 230.53 points or 0.84% at 27,259.25.

Hong Kong shares closed lower on Tuesday, as property shares fell on worries around developer Evergrande, while fears of a hit to global growth from higher Delta variant coronavirus cases hurt sentiment.

** The Hang Seng index ended down 230.53 points or 0.84% at 27,259.25. The Hang Seng China Enterprises index fell 0.94% to 9,864.57. ** A sub-index of the Hang Seng tracking energy shares dipped 2.3%, while the IT sector fell 0.91%, the financial sector ended 0.8% lower and the property sector dropped 1.08%.

** The property sector was hit by concerns about cashflow at China Evergrande Group, which slumped 10.23% to be the biggest H-shares percentage decliner. The company's bonds also tumbled. ** Worries over Evergrande's financial health persisted even after a local housing authority removed an earlier sales suspension at two real estate projects.

** Adding to indications that Chinese policymakers are avoiding a new round of easing, China kept its benchmark lending rate for corporate and household loans unchanged at its July fixing on Tuesday, despite growing expectations for a cut. ** The top gainer on the Hang Seng was Haidilao International Holding Ltd, which gained 3.46%, while the biggest loser was Alibaba Health Information Technology Ltd, which fell 7.39%.

** China's main Shanghai Composite index closed down 0.07% at 3,536.79 points, while the blue-chip CSI300 index ended down 0.09%. ** Around the region, MSCI's Asia ex-Japan stock index was weaker by 0.6%, while Japan's Nikkei index closed down 0.96%.

** The yuan was quoted at 6.4821 per U.S. dollar at 0818 GMT, 0.13% firmer than the previous close of 6.4905.