Hong Kong - Hong Kong shares dropped 2.85 per cent Tuesday as banking stocks dipped lower on worries over profit losses and capital.

The blue-chip Hang Seng Index lost 300.22 points to end the day below the 12,000 level at 12,959.77 points. Turnover was a relatively low 39.5 billion Hong Kong dollars
(5.07 billion US dollars.)

Global banking giant HSBC continued its decline, sinking 7.7 per cent to 57.5 Hong Kong dollars, bringing the share price down more than 20 per cent since the beginning of last week.

The Bank of China also fell 6.5 per cent while Hang Seng Bank closed 3.5 per cent.

The Hang Seng Index has lost around 14 per cent of its value since staging a brief rally when it climbed above the 15,000 level in the New Year. (dpa)