Hong Kong stocks dip as investors see no reduction on trade feud

The Hong Kong stock market fell on Tuesday as Beijing and Washington engaged in a war of words and warnings in their protracted dispute over trade and technology. ** At close, the Hang Seng index was down 0.5% at 26,761.52. The Hang Seng China Enterprises index fell 0.9%. The sub-index of the Hang Seng tracking energy shares eased 0.2%, while the IT sector dipped 2.1%, the financial sector ended 0.4% lower and the property sector lost 0.1%.

U.S. President Donald Trump, on a state visit to the UK, is expected to warn his hosts on Tuesday that security cooperation with Washington could be hurt if London allows China's Huawei a role in building parts of the 5G network, the next generation of cellular technology. ** The U.S. government said on Monday that China was pursuing a "blame game" in recent public statements and a weekend white paper that misrepresented the trade negotiations between the world's two largest economies. A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson rebuffed on Tuesday.

China's foreign ministry has warned companies operating in the United States they could face harassment from U.S. law enforcement agencies, state media reported on Tuesday. ** A day earlier, China warned students and academics about risks involved in studying in the United States, pointing to limits on the duration of visas and visa refusals. ** The top gainer on the Hang Seng was WH Group Ltd, which gained 2.2%, while the biggest loser was CSPC Pharmaceutical Group Ltd, which fell 3.8%. ** Around the region, MSCI's Asia ex-Japan stock index was weaker by 0.3%, while Japan's Nikkei index closed flat.

The three biggest H-shares percentage decliners were New China Life Insurance Co Ltd, which was down 4.5%, CSPC Pharmaceutical Group Ltd, which fell 3.8% and Sinopharm Group Co Ltd, down by 3%. ** About 1.57 billion Hang Seng index shares were traded. The volume traded in the previous trading session was 1.77 billion. ** At close, China's A-shares were trading at a premium of 27.51% over Hong Kong-listed H-shares.