Hong Kong stocks saw a widened fall by midday on Wednesday amid persistent interest rate cut and Sino-US trade uncertainties.

The benchmark Hang Seng Index further dropped to 22,627 points by noon, 1.4 percent or 316 points lower than the previous close, with a half-day main board turnover of HK$169.45 billion. The indicator opened 228 points lower.

The blue-chip index once fell as low as 22,436 points in the morning.

This follows a declaration in January by US Federal Reserve officials expressing their readiness to hold interest rates steady amid stubborn inflation and economic-policy uncertainty.