Hong Kong - Hong Kong shares slid back a further 3 per cent Thursday as investors sold off stocks on concerns over the state of the global economy.

The Hang Seng Index fell 611.06 points, or 3.09 per cent, to close the day at 19,388.72 points, just one day after tumbling back through the 20,000 barrier. Turnover was 
69.59 billion Hong Kong dollars (8.9 billion US dollars).

Thursday's sell-off was led by Chinese telecom stocks and triggered by worse than expected quarterly losses by US investment bank Lehman Brothers overnight, indicating that the credit crunch is still far from over.

The losses were the second straight day of heavy selling on the Hang Seng Index which shed 2.4 per cent Wednesday and is now almost 13,000 points off its peak of just below 32,000 points in late October. (dpa)