Mainland China and Hong Kong stocks closed higher on Thursday, as investors concerned about the economic outlook rotated into sectors expected to benefit from government policies, with property stocks outperforming.

In Hong Kong, the benchmark Hang Seng Index ended the day up 136.05 points, or 0.57 percent, at 24,028.37.

The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index climbed 0.83 percent to end at 8,668.26 points, and the Hang Seng Tech Index dropped 0.29 percent to end at 5,216.60.

Market participants are closely monitoring any policy stimulus signals after China's producer deflation deepened in June to its worst level in almost two years.

Real estate stocks rallied as some investors speculated on fresh stimulus, such as a potential resumption of the shantytown renovation programme.

Hong Kong-listed property stocks and mainland property shares jumped 4.1 percent and 2.6 percent, respectively.

Longan Group surged more than 20 percent after the homebuilder said it had secured bondholder approval for its onshore debt restructuring plan.

On the mainland, the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index closed up 0.48 percent at 3,509.68 while the Shenzhen Component Index closed 0.47 percent higher at 10,631.13.

The combined turnover of these two indices stood at 1.49 trillion yuan, down from 1.51 trillion yuan a day ago.

The property sector and rare earth stocks were among the top performers, while stocks in the gaming, consumer electronics and military defense sectors suffered major losses.

The ChiNext Index, tracking China's Nasdaq-style board of growth enterprises, gained 0.22 percent to close at 2,189.58.

Tokyo stocks fell due to a stronger yen and speculation of heavy selling linked to exchange-traded funds, which weighed on investor sentiment.

The benchmark Nikkei stock index, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average, closed at 39,646.36, down 174.92 points or 0.44 percent, from Wednesday.

In London, European stock markets rose at the start of trading, with London hitting a fresh record high on optimism that governments will strike deals to avoid the worst of US tariffs.

London's FTSE 100 index gained 0.8 percent to 8,938.38, surpassing its previous record set in March, lifted by gains in mining stocks. (Agencies/Xinhua)