Share prices were lower, tracking the falls on Wall Street overnight, with sentiment continued under pressure after S&P's downgrade of the territory's local currency ratings outlook to negative from stable yesterday, dealers said.

Share prices closed the morning lower on profit-taking following yesterday's gains, with sentiment also weighed down by Standard & Poor's downgrade of Hong Kong's local currency ratings outlook and the ratings on HSBC's Hong Kong units, dealers said.

Share prices closed the morning lower tracking the overnight falls on Wall Street amid caution in the lead up to the first anniversary of the Sept 11 terrorist attacks next week, dealers said.

Shares prices closed lower in cautious trade, with Wall Street's overnight performance seen as a mere short-term rebound rather than indicating a genuine improvement in sentiment, dealers said.

Share prices closed the morning lower in reaction to the steep declines on Wall Street overnight, but recent sustained falls on the local bourse help limit losses in the magnitude seen in US markets, dealers said.

Share prices closed the morning lower in listless trade, with investors waiting for the outcome of the US FOMC meeting tomorrow and the interim results announcement from China Mobile on Wednesday, dealers said.

Share prices closed the morning lower due to the general perception that the outlook for Wall Street will remain unstable, in spite of its strong gains overnight, dealers said.

Share prices closed a relatively rangebound morning session higher in thin trade, rebounding slightly from yesterday's heavy losses, although investors continued to exercise caution after a volatile session on Wall Street overnight, dealers said.

Share prices closed a relatively lacklustre morning session slightly lower, with trade locked in a fairly tight range as a lack of solid leads kept most players on the sidelines, dealers said.

Share prices closed the morning lower, pressured by Wall Street's overnight weakness following weak US retail sales data, dealers said.

Share prices were lower after Wall Street's decline, but off their lows with H-shares outperforming, amid general investor caution towards the weekend, dealers said.

Prices of American Depositary Receipts in Asian companies closed lower, as technology and telecoms pressured Asia lower, dealers said.

Motorola has announced a three-contract deal with China Unicom worth £98m.