HSBC slides 5.5 percent on dividend disappointment

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Shares in HSBC (0005.HK) dropped 5.5 percent on Wednesday after shedding a fifth of its market value in the previous session.

The stock slid to HK$43.65, its lowest level since the Asian financial crisis of 1997-98, a 40 percent plunge in its share price since the beginning of the year.

UK-based lender HSBC announced a widely-expected $17.7 billion rights issue on Monday at a deeply discounted HK$28 per share but a 29 percent reduction in its annual dividend and the threat of further impairments left investors disenchanted.

(Reporting by Parvathy Ullatil; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)