China shares fall on economy worries

China shares fell early Monday on worries rooted in a slew of weaker-than-expected economic data, while Sinopec Corp led a bigger slide in the Hong Kong market. The CSI300 of the leading Shanghai and Shenzhen A-share listings declined 0.5 per cent. The Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.2 per cent at 2,327.60 points. Over the weekend, China released a data batch that showed softness in China's factory output, retail sales and urban investment, which added to concerns about the health of the world's second-largest economy. Banking shares were weak on Monday, with Bank of Ningbo Co Ping An Bank Co declining by 1.1 both declining 1.1 per cent. Shares in Asia's top oil refiner Sinopec Corp eased 1.1 per cent by midday in Shanghai's market and 5.4 per cent in Hong Kong after the company said it plans to sell a 107.1 billion yuan ($17.5 billion) stake in its retail unit. China Life Insurance and a consortium including People's Insurance Group of China Co Ltd and Tencent Holdings Ltd are each taking 10 billion yuan stakes in the Sinopec's $17.5 billion deal, according to Reuters.