Panic selling gripped the mainland B-share markets yesterday on the back of Hong Kong's troubles, with the Shanghai B-Share Index plummeting to a historic low.
Analysts said foreign funds, reacting to the free fall on the Hong Kong stock market, were selling mainland shares right from the opening bell until the Shanghai market's close.
This drove the Shanghai B-Share Index down 4.077 points, or 9.07 per cent, to 40.897, the lowest close since the exchange reopened in December 1990.
'It was sell, sell, sell all the way and even the good stocks were not spared,' Haitong Securities analyst Jiang Chang said.
Nearly all stocks closed at or near the daily limit-down of 10 per cent.
Shanghai B shares are now trading at price-earnings multiples of 8.78, compared with 44.92 for A shares.
With yesterday's sharp fall, the Shanghai B-Share Index has lost nearly 60 per cent of its value from last year's high of 97.97 points on May 6.