Passersby look at a board displaying the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong August 19. Hong Kong's blue chip Hang Seng Index fell 619.62 points on Tuesday, its biggest drop since March 1996, to 15,477.26 as interest rates surged on fears of speculation against the currency. Interbank dealers said the Hong Kong Monetary Authority's threat to raise interest rates to punitive levels to ward off currency speculators prompted traders to cover short positions, pushing up interest rates and slamming interest-rate sensitive stocks such as banks and property companies.

HONGKONG STOCKS