SHANGHAI, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Hong Kong shares closed lower
on Monday, dragged down by index heavyweight Alibaba following a
report about a corruption scandal, while other tech giants also
weighed.
** The Hang Seng index fell 1.2%, to 24,656.46, while
the China Enterprises index lost 1.5%, to 8,658.11
points.
** Alibaba Group slumped 6.3% and was the biggest
drag on the Hang Seng Index, after a report said its financial
affiliate Ant Group was connected to a corruption scandal.
** China's top anti-graft watchdog pledged to investigate
and punish any corrupt behaviour found behind internet platform
monopolies.
** Meanwhile, the Hang Seng Tech index dropped
2.8%, tracking Wall Street losses with the U.S. Federal Reserve
expected to confirm it will soon start draining the massive
pandemic-era liquidity.
** Meituan and Tencent Holdings fell
2.2% and 1.1%, respectively.
** Shares of China Evergrande Group jumped nearly
4% after it named a state firm official to its board.
** The provincial government of Guangdong was aiming to
release a framework debt restructuring plan for Evergrande by
March, according to a report on Friday.
** Shimao Group and Agile Group rose
0.2% and 7.4%, respectively, following asset sales to
state-backed firms to raise money.
** China's real estate sector will likely see "significant
easing" in policies that govern it, BNP Paribas Asset Management
said, months after starting to build a long position in that
sector's debt.
(Reporting by the Shanghai Newsroom; Editing by Shounak
Dasgupta)