China stocks fall as weak appetite, absence of stimulus measures weigh
Corrects formatting of bullet points
By Summer Zhen
HONG KONG, Aug 20 (Reuters) -China and Hong Kong stocks dipped on Tuesday as recent economic indicators barely offered any comfort, while the lack of fresh stimulus policies also kept investors on the sidelines.
China left benchmark lending rates unchanged at a monthly fixing, in line with market expectations. Shrinking interest margins at lenders hampered continued easing efforts after China lowered a string of key interest rates a month earlier.
Coal stocks .CSI000820 led the decline as sluggish mid-year earnings and demand left traders disappointed.
Downside risk to China growth is rising, Goldman Sachs economists said in a note. "If we are wrong and fiscal policy remains restrictive through the remainder of the year, the various negative forces at play could reinforce each other and growth would slow further."
China's bank lending tumbled more than expected in July and hit the lowest in nearly 15 years, according to data released last week.
** The Shanghai Composite index .SSEC was down 0.1% at 2,865.18 points on Tuesday.
** China's blue-chip CSI300 index .CSI300 was down 0.7%, with its financial sector sub-index .CSI300FS down 0.1%, the consumer staples sector .CSI000912 dipped 0.6%, the real estate index .CSI000952 slipped 1.5% and the healthcare sub-index .CSI300HC dropped 1.2%.
** Chinese H-shares listed in Hong Kong .HSCE fell 0.5% to 6,192.79, while the Hang Seng Index .HSI was down 0.4% at 17,506.34.
** The smaller Shenzhen index .SZSC was down 1.3%, the start-up board ChiNext Composite index .CNT was weaker by 1% and Shanghai's tech-focused STAR50 index .STAR50 was down nearly 1%.
** MSCI's Asia ex-Japan stock index .MIAPJ0000PUS gained 0.23% while Japan's Nikkei index .N225 was up 1.80%.
** The yuan CNY=CFXS was quoted at 7.146 per U.S. dollar, 0.1% weaker than the previous close of 7.139.
Reporting by Summer Zhen; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips
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