HONG KONG: Hong Kong stocks closed lower on Wednesday, with the benchmark index posting the longest losing streak in nearly four months, while investors waited for the outcome of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s policy meeting.

At the close of trade, the Hang Seng index fell 0.3%, to 25,024.75, booking the seventh straight day of losses, the longest losing streak since early July. The China Enterprises index lost 0.1%, to 8,856.99 points.

Market analysts said the attention has shifted to Fed’s policy meeting, where the U.S. central bank is widely expected to announce the tapering of its $120 billion-a-month asset purchase programme in a statement at 1800 GMT.

Analysts said the Fed’s policy shift would affect global financial markets, as the move could prompt capital flows into dollar-denominated assets. Separately, market sentiment was dampened as new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases in China spiked to a near three-month high.

The National Health Commission on Wednesday confirmed 93 new local symptomatic cases for Nov. 2, up from 54 a day earlier and the highest daily count since Aug. 9 at the peak of China’s last major outbreak.