Hong Kong stocks edge up as AI shares offset property weakness

HONG KONG, Oct 5 (Reuters) - Hong Kong stocks edged up in light trading on Monday, as optimism in AI-related stocks outweighed selling pressure in property shares.

** At the close, Hong Kong benchmark Hang Seng .HSI and the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index .HSCE were both up 0.3%.

** The Hang Seng Tech .HSTECH meanwhile gained 0.6%

** AI supply chain and chipmaking shares led the gains. Index heavyweights Lenovo Group 0992.HK and Hua Hong Grace Semiconductor advanced more than 4% each.

** PCB maker Kingboard Laminates 1888.HK surged 12%.

** Shares in rate-sensitive sectors, meanwhile, continued to decline.

** Real estate firms .HSNP dropped 0.7% to lead the declines. A financial subindex tracking big banks and insurance firms .HSNF closed slightly down.

** China's onshore financial markets are closed from October 1 until October 7 for the National Day holidays. Trading will resume on October 8.

** The travel and retail sales data during the week-long holiday could provide an early signal on consumer demand heading into the fourth quarter.

** Citi analysts said the Golden Week activity looked "underwhelming" based on early data.

** Retail and tourism spending likely softened per traveller despite steady footfall, they said in a note.

** Shares of Budweiser Brewing Company APAC 1876.HK slipped to HK$5.555 in early trade, the lowest since their debut in September 2019.

** The brewer said it expects to record a $52 million non-underlying withholding tax charge resulting from an internal restructuring involving some of its Chinese mainland subsidiaries to enhance capital efficiency.