(Agencies/China Daily)
Updated: 2008-01-23 10:41

PetroChina Co and CNOOC Ltd plunged by records in Hong Kong trading as the city's benchmark index posted the biggest two-day slump in a decade.

PetroChina, the world's biggest company by market value, dropped 15 percent to HK$9.62, the most since its April 2000 listing. CNOOC fell 13 percent to HK$9.65, the most since its February 2001 debut.

PetroChina, traded in Shanghai and Hong Kong, has lost almost 40 percent of the $1 trillion capitalization reached in November, more than General Electric Co's market value.

"Near-term market volatility due to concern on Chinese economic austerity measures" could pose a risk to PetroChina, HSBC Securities Asia Ltd analysts Henik Fung, Andrew Chan and Steven Hongxing Li wrote in a research note yesterday. "Falling global oil prices on concern of a global economic slowdown triggered by the US subprime issue" could also affect the stock, they said.

PetroChina, which lost $33.51 billion of its market value yesterday, now trades at less than half the high of HK$20.25 it closed at on Nov 1. Billionaire US investor Warren Buffett said on Oct 18 that his Berkshire Hathaway Inc had sold its entire holding in PetroChina. The stock closed at HK$18.92 that day.

PetroChina's Hong Kong shares account for less than 5 percent of the company's total market capitalization. The company is valued at $611.8 billion after the end of yesterday's trading in Hong Kong and Shanghai, where the stock fell 4.7 percent.

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp, or Sinopec, fell 8.8 percent to HK$7.65, slumping to a record two-day drop. Sinopec is China's second-largest oil company and CNOOC the third-biggest.