U.S.-listed Chinese firms trade mostly lower

NEW YORK, April 6 (Xinhua) -- U.S.-listed Chinese companies traded mostly lower on Wednesday with nine of the top 10 stocks by weight in the S&P U.S. Listed China 50 index ending the day on a downbeat note.

Shares of NIO and Pinduoduo dipped 3.52 percent and 3.27 percent, respectively, leading the laggards in the top 10 stocks in the index.

Shares of BeiGene climbed 0.38 percent, the lone gainer in the top 10 stocks.

U.S. stocks fell on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve's March meeting minutes pointed to tighter monetary policy.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased 144.67 points, or 0.42 percent, to 34,496.51. The S&P 500 lost 43.97 points, or 0.97 percent, to 4,481.15. The Nasdaq Composite Index shed 315.35 points, or 2.22 percent, to 13,888.82.

The Cboe Volatility Index, widely considered as the best fear gauge in the stock market, rose 5.09 percent to 22.10.

As of Tuesday, the S&P U.S. Listed China 50 index, which is designed to track the performance of the 50 largest Chinese companies listed on U.S. exchanges by total market cap, stood at 2,516.68, marking a 7.17-percent gain for the month-to-date returns and a 15.5-percent loss for the year-to-date returns.