Hong Kong stocks close 0.57% lower

Hong Kong stocks fell 133.45 points, or 0.57 percent, to close at 23,094.88 points on Thursday. The benchmark Hang Seng Index traded between 23,357.16 and 23, 073.88. Turnover totaled 56.76 billion HK dollars (about 7.32 billion U.S. dollars). The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index fell 61.07 points, or 0. 57 percent, to close at 10,568.71. All of the four sub-indices lost ground, with the Finance sub- index falling the most at 0.82 percent, followed by the Utilities at 0.71 percent, the Commerce & Industry at 0.38 percent, the Properties at 0.14 percent. Banking giant HSBC, which accounts for the largest weighting of the Hang Seng Index, fell 1 percent to 84.05 HK dollars, while its local unit Hang Seng Bank closed flat at 128.30 HK dollars. Bank of East Asia, another Hong Kong's major bank, rose 0.15 percent to end at 33 HK dollars. Local bourse operator HKEX was down 0.55 percent to 127.60 HK dollars. Local developers closed mixed. Hang Lung Properties rose 0.59 percent to 25.50 HK dollars. Henderson Land, another major developer in Hong Kong, fell 0.65 percent to 46 HK dollars, and Cheung Kong Holding, a powerful HK-based developer controlled by billionaire Li Ka-shing, surged 1.07 percent to 123.20 HK dollars. Sun Hung Kai Properties moved down 0.97 percent to 102.10 HK dollars. As for mainland-based financial stocks, China Construction Bank dropped 0.99 percent to 6 HK dollars. ICBC decreased 1.63 percent to 5.44 HK dollars. Bank of China fell 0.83 percent to 3.59 HK dollars. Bank of Communications went down 1.39 percent to 5.69 HK dollars. PetroChina was down 1.1 percent at 8.98 HK dollars. Sinopec lowered 0.65 percent to 6.16 HK dollars. (1 U.S. dollar equals 7. 75 HK dollars)