Stocks in emerging Asia tumbled on Monday as fresh US-China trade tensions paused an AI-fuelled rally that had sent markets to multi-year highs last week.

In Hong Kong, the benchmark Hang Seng Index ended the day down 400 points, or 1.52 percent, at 25,889.

The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index lost 1.45 percent to end at 9,222, and the Hang Seng Tech Index shed 1.82 percent to finish at 6,145.

On the mainland, the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index trimmed its losses, which hit 2.5 percent at one stage, to end down just 0.19 percent at 3,889, as did the Shenzhen Component Index in closing 0.93 percent lower at 13,231.

The MSCI's gauge of Asian emerging market equities, which had been hovering around a more than four-year high since the start of October, fell 1.5 percent.

The regional losses came after US President Donald Trump on Friday announced additional 100 percent levies on China's US-bound exports, effective November 1, in a reprisal over Beijing curbing its critical mineral exports. Beijing on Sunday defended its curbs on exports of rare earth elements and equipment, but stopped short of imposing new levies on US products. (Reuters/Xinhua)