China Stocks Fall Further On Data's Bad Surprise

Hong Kong and Shanghai stocks extended losses Monday morning, as China's imports and exports both posted unexpected drops last month, suggesting more downside risks facing the economy. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 0.7%, adding to Friday's 0.4% loss, while the Shanghai Composite Index was weaker by 0.4%, heading toward a possible fifth losing session in a row. In Hong Kong, several top-weighted stocks traded lower, with Tencent Holdings Ltd. down 1.3%, Tencent Holdings Ltd. down 1%, and China Construction Bank Corp. off 0.2%. Shares of the mainland Chinese banks recorded solid losses, as Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd. gave up 1.4%, while both Bank of Communications Co. and China Merchants Bank Co. pulled back by 1.1% each, and Bank of China Ltd. traded 0.9% lower. Mainland China's top snack-food maker Want Want China Holdings Ltd. lost 3.3%, after issuing a profit warning for 2014. Rivals Tingyi Cayman Islands Holding Corp. and Taiwan-based Uni-President China Holdings Ltd. also fell 0.4% and 0.6%, respectively. Auto maker Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd. reversed to a 1.5% loss after it unveiled a plan to acquire a SUV- and high-end-sedan manufacturing plant from its parent company, Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co. Its domestic competitors were mixed, as Great Wall Motor Co. lost 2.6%, while BYD Co. rose 1.3%, and Brilliance China Automotive Holdings Ltd. added 0.4%.