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Staff of Reuters 3 Minute Read* The HK->Shanghai Connect daily quota was used 4.7 percent of the time, while the Shanghai->HK daily quota was used -3 percent of the time. The FTSE China A50 is down 0.4%. (Reuters) – SHANGHAI, July 5 (Reuters) – On Monday, Hong Kong stocks plummeted as IT firms tumbled over concerns about Beijing’s crackdown on Didi Global, the world’s largest ride-hailing company, and scrutiny of other Chinese platform companies. ** The Hang Seng index down 0.5 percent to 28,181.72 points, and the Hong Kong China Enterprises Index fell 1.1 percent to 10,297.63 points. * The Hang Seng technology index fell 2.2 percent, reaching its lowest level since mid-May. * Tencent was down 3.9 percent, Alibaba was down 2.4 percent, while JD.com, Baidu, and Meituan were all down between 3.1 and 5.5 percent. * Didi Global Inc, China’s largest ride-hailing company, said on Sunday that the withdrawal of its “DiDi Chuxing” app from Chinese smartphone app stores is expected to hurt its revenue. * China’s cyberspace authority had ordered app retailers to stop selling Didi’s app earlier on Sunday after discovering that the business had improperly gathered users’ personal data. * China’s internet watchdog announced on Monday that it is examining online recruiter Zhipin.com, as well as truck-hailing apps Huochebang and Yunmanman, as part of a stepped-up crackdown on mainland tech firms amid tougher data security regulations. * China equities stabilized on Monday, following a drop the previous day, as investors reacted to the country’s latest services data. ** The CSI300 index lost 0.2 percent to 5,072.12 points at the end of the morning session, while the Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.2 percent to 3,524.30 points. The uneven result came after key indices plunged the most in four months on Friday due to fears about the economy. ** According to Essence Securities, “Most of (China’s) broad-based indexes and industry indices now stand at the conclusion of a rising trend, and the stock advance since the first quarter may have finished, leading to a likely correction moving forward.” According to a private poll released on Monday, growth in China’s services sector dropped drastically in June to a 14-month low, pulled down by a return of COVID-19 cases in southern China, raising concerns that the world’s second-largest economy is losing steam. (Luoyan Liu and Andrew Galbraith contributed reporting; Shailesh Kuber edited the piece.) )/nRead More

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