Hong Kong, China shares dip in morning trade

Hong Kong - Chinese stocks fell on Monday morning, with Hong Kong pulled lower by a fall in China Telecom shares after news its head has been detained in a corruption crackdown.

The southern Chinese city's benchmark Hang Seng Index lost 0.41%, or 90.69 points, to 22 047.44.

Shares in China Telecom dropped after news chairman Chang Xiaobing was under investigation for "severe disciplinary violations", the latest high-profile target in a corruption crackdown.

The shares in one of China's largest telecom providers fell as much as three percent in early Hong Kong trade, but recovered to a fall of around 0.80% by the break.

Shanghai stocks were moderately lower by the end of the morning session due to worries over a worsening business environment for companies, dealers said.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index slipped 0.20%, or 7.14 points, to 3 620.77.

But the Shenzhen Composite Index, which tracks stocks on China's second exchange, gained 0.42%, or 9.92 points, to 2 369.65.