BEIJING, Aug. 17 (Xinhua) -- Chinese shares closed lower Friday with the medical equipment industry leading the decline.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index was down 1.34 percent to close at 2,668.97. The Shenzhen Component Index lost 1.69 percent to close at 8,357.04.
More than 2,500 stocks closed lower on the two bourses, while nearly 400 stocks gained.
Combined turnover on the two bourses stood at 265.5 billion yuan (about 38.5 billion U.S. dollars), down from 270.8 billion yuan the previous trading day.
The ChiNext Index, China's NASDAQ-style board, was down 2.02 percent to close at 1,434.31.
The medical equipment sector was among the heaviest losers, with Hangzhou Tigermed Consulting losing by the daily limit of 10 percent to end at 51.3 yuan.
