HONG KONG (Nikkei Markets) -- Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index on Friday fell below 30,000 for the first time this year, after indexes on Wall Street tumbled overnight as the specter of tightening monetary policy across the developed world worried investors.
The Hang Seng Index was down 3.3% to 29,436.73 by the noon lunchbreak, with all 51 constituents trading lower. Country Garden Holdings led losses on the gauge in percentage terms, dropping 6%. Tencent Holdings slid 3.3% to HK$406.20, after falling below HK$400 in the morning session for the first time since Dec. 21. Financial heavyweights Ping An Insurance Group, China Construction Bank (CCB) and HSBC Holdings shed 5.2%, 4.2% and 2.1%, respectively.
