Hong Kong, Mainland Markets In Sharp Fall

Hong Kong stocks sank more than 1 percent on Tuesday morning as investors took a step back following a recent run-up, while awaiting this week's key meeting between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping.

The Hang Seng Index fell 1.3 percent, to 28,140 by the break.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite Index was down 1.8 percent, to 2,953 while the Shenzhen composite index lost over 2 percent, to 1,543.

Other Asian equities were mixed while gold hit a fresh six-year high on a weaker US dollar and the US-Iran crisis.

Tokyo finished the morning 0.2 percent lower. Taipei was also down. However, Sydney and Singapore were both 0.1 percent higher while Seoul and Wellington added 0.2 percent apiece. Manila and Jakarta were also up.

"The G20 will not get going until midweek, but the anticipation of a meeting between the leaders of China and the US is keeping markets guessing," said Oanda senior market analyst Alfonso Esparza.

"The prolonged trade war between the two largest economies has downgraded global growth as more barriers to trade means higher prices. Optimism remains high, but more details need to emerge before the market can fully price in how far apart the two sides really are from a deal."

Gold prices continue to rise – sitting at highs not seen since September 2013 – as investors seek out the safe haven to hedge against a possible US-Iran conflagration, while the softening US dollar is also providing support.

The yellow metal was trading at US$1,426 per ounce, up from US$1,407.41 earlier. (AFP)

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