BEIJING: China stocks ended lower on Wednesday morning, as early gains following a private survey showing growth in the service sector were erased by continuing worries about the economy.
Investors are seeking fresh policy cues from this week’s meeting of China’s legislature, the National People’s Congress.
Stocks in the pharmaceutical, media and entertainment sectors posted strong gains after the HSBC Markit survey showed activity in China’s service sector grew modestly in February as new orders rose at their quickest pace in three months.
But offseting the gains were weakness in financial heavyweights and real estate stocks, which reflects lingering worries over economic health.
“The service sector has been relatively stable, but what investors are more concerned is the health of the industrial sector,” said Zhang Chen, analyst at Shanghai-based hedge fund manager Hongyi Investment.
“We expect to see continued pattern of volatility as investors are looking for directions.”
The CSI300 index was down 0.1 percent at the end of the morning, while the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.2 percent.
The Hang Seng index dropped 0.3 percent, to 24,623.33 points. Hong Kong retail stocks, including Sa Sa International , Chow Tai Fook and Giordano International sagged on news Hong Kong retail sales in January slid 14.6 percent from a year earlier, their worst showing since 2003.
