HONG KONG-- Hong Kong stocks went down 464. 24 points, or 2.35 percent, to open at 19,319.43 on Thursday, tracking lost on Wall Street overnight.

Heavyweight HSBC tumbled 4.7 percent to open at HK$65.75 ($8.43 ) per share, dragging down the benchmark Hang Seng Index by 140 points. China Mobile edged down 0.83 percent to open at HK$72.

Local property developer Cheung Kong fell 2.32 percent. Hutchison Whampoa, the world's biggest container terminal operator, lost 2.1 percent. Local bourse operator HKEx was down 2 percent.

Shares of China's biggest Internet company Tencent Holdings lost more than 5 percent to open at HK$181, after the company recorded a revenue of 13.1 billion yuan ($2.04 billion) in the first half this year, up 47 percent from the same period last year.

On Wednesday, the benchmark Hang Seng Index rebounded 452.97 points, or 2.34 percent, to end at 19,783.67 points, after slumping for three consecutive trading days.

Right before the opening on Thursday, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, which plays the-central-bank role in the city, said it has noted the significant downward movements overnight in the equity markets in Europe and the US

"There are a number of market hearsays and rumors, including the possible downgrade of sovereign rating of France, reflecting the weak confidence and risk aversion sentiments of investors. We expect the Asian market will also experience high volatility today," the Hong Kong Monetary Authority's spokesperson said in a statement.

The spokesperson said Hong Kong's banking system is robust with high liquidity, and the inter-bank market has been operating in an orderly manner.

"Our financial system is resilient and able to cope with market volatilities," the spokesperson said, while asking again investors to remain calm and vigilant.