Hong Kong Stocks Retreat, With Casinos, Banks Falling

Hong Kong stocks traded lower early Wednesday, with weakness in financials and casino shares helping to drag the Hang Seng Index to a 0.7% loss. The H-share index was 1% lower, though over on the Chinese mainland, the Shanghai Composite lost a more modest 0.5%. With Macau gambling revenue for October registering its biggest fall since 2009, casino shares sold off, as Hang Seng components Sands China Ltd. and Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd. lost 4.2% and 4%, respectively. Energy shares suffered further from the drop in crude-oil prices, with PetroChina Co. 1.5% lower, and Cnooc Ltd. down 1.2%. Financials also moved broadly lower, with Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd. down 1%, Agricultural Bank of China Ltd. off 1.4%, and Haitong Securities Co. lower by 1.4%. Also losing ground, PICC Property & Calsualty Co. fell 4% on news a rights issue.