BEIJING - A weak reading of the HSBC Flash Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) that suggested contraction in the manufacturing sector in May weighed on Chinese shares on Thursday, sinking stocks indexes by more than 1 percent.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index lost 1.16 percent, or 26.74 points, to end at 2,275.67. The Shenzhen Component Index fell 1.48 percent, or 139.39 points, to 9,265.68.