Asian markets mostly fell Thursday, with downbeat Chinese manufacturing data dragging down Hong Kong and Shanghai as concerns grew about the pace of recovery in the world's second-largest economy. Seoul dropped 1.38 percent, or 28.57 points, to 2,044.21, Hong Kong lost 0.66 percent, or 165.66 points, to 24,994.1, Shanghai slid 0.44 percent, or 9.75 points, to 2,230.46 while Sydney ended flat, edging up 4.3 points to 5,638.9. Traders were focused on China as the HSBC preliminary purchasing managers index (PMI), which tracks activity in the country's factories and workshops, slipped to 50.3 in August. The downward trend in Asian markets came despite a positive lead from Wall Street, where the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 0.35 percent at 16,979.13 on Wednesday.



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