Hong Kong stocks fell, bucking a regional rally, as investors took a breather after five days of gains in the city. The benchmark Hang Seng index was down 0.5 percent, at 22,829.02 points, while the Hong Kong China Enterprises Index lost 0.1 percent, to 9,723.05 points. The Hang Seng China AH Premium Index, which measures the valuation gap for companies listed on both mainland exchanges and in Hong Kong, rebounded on Thursday after touching a three-month low.
The index ended at 120.74, meaning major Hong Kong stocks currently trade at a 20 percent discount to their mainland peers. The discount has halved over the past year, partly due to mainland money flowing into Hong Kong shares. Services shares led a broad-based retreat, with an index tracking the sector down 1.4 percent. The tech sector also fell after index heavyweight Tencent Holdings Ltd dropped more than 1 percent after rising 6.2 percent in the past five sessions.