Stocks of Hong Kong-listed tech companies saw a wide selloff on Friday, dragging the benchmark Hang Seng Index down 1.78 percent, said market analyst Wang Yin.
The Hang Seng Index down 1.78 percent to close at 24,562.24 points. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index dropped 2.18 percent to end at 8,136.73 points, while the Hang Seng Tech Index dropped 4.37 percent to end at 4,623.17 points.
Wang said stocks of chipmakers and digital storage led the losses.
"Over in Hong Kong, shares also swooned, led by tech stocks. Stocks of storage concepts were among the top losers. GigaDevice Semiconductor fell 12 percent and Montage Technology lost 9 percent, and the decline of storage-related ETFs widened. Chipmakers continue to drag stock indices lower, as a brutal selloff in chipmakers rippled through global markets today, triggering a rout across Asia. Hong Kong-listed shares of chipmaker SMIC tumbled nearly 11 percent, and Hua Hong Grace Semiconductor was trading nearly 13 percent lower," said Wang.
Wang said AI-related stocks are also affected by the broad tech selloff.
"Meanwhile, AI-related stocks suffered heavy losses, leading losses on the market's tech-stock index. Shares of Z.AI, better known as Zhipu AI, plunged more than 28 percent, its biggest percentage fall since its listing earlier this year and MiniMax Group dropped more than 15 percent. Hang Seng Artificial Intelligence Index was trading down 10.6 percent at the close," said Wang.
Tech stocks lead losses in Hong Kong market on Friday: analyst
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday urged efforts to carry out search and rescue operations in a scientific manner after a landslide struck a county in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, leaving people trapped and missing.
The landslide occurred at 9:08 Friday in Hanjia Sub-district along a section of the Wujiang River in Pengshui Miao and Tujia Autonomous County, burying several residential buildings at the foot of the mountain. Ten people had been rescued as of 14:00, according to local authorities.
In his instructions, Xi stressed the need for scientific search and rescue operations to prevent secondary disasters, and called for proper medical treatment for the injured and appropriate arrangements for the aftermath. He also urged relevant departments to identify the cause of the disaster, draw lessons from this case and conduct thorough inspections to eliminate geological hazards. Xi emphasized that all regions and relevant departments must further fulfill their safety responsibilities, strengthen monitoring, early warning and risk inspection systems, and ensure that all work is carried out in a concrete and meticulous manner, so as to effectively protect the lives and property of the people.
The Ministry of Natural Resources on Friday raised its geological disaster emergency response to Level II from Level III and dispatched a working team to the site.
A four-tier emergency response system is in place for geological disasters, with Level I being the most severe.
Xi urges scientific search and rescue efforts after Chongqing landslide
