Hong Kong shares sink to 9-month low as Fed, weak China flash PMI weigh

HONG KONG, June 20 (Reuters) - Hong Kong shares extended losses to a nine-month low on Thursday, with defensive counters sliding after the U.S. Federal Reserve signalled a tapering of stimulus and cyclicals hurt by a weak China factory activity.

At 0330 GMT, the Hang Seng Index was down 2.5 percent at 20,443.8 points, breaking below chart support at September lows at about 20,485. The China Enterprises Index of the top Chinese listings in Hong Kong dived 3.2 percent.

The H-share index is now down nearly 20 percent on the year and languishing at its most oversold levels since June 1998.

China's factory activity weakened to a nine-month low in June as demand faltered, a preliminary survey showed, heightening risks that a second quarter slowdown could be sharper than expected and raising the heat on the central bank to loosen policy.