85pc of China stocks fall as Trump’s surprise swerve on US tariffs spooks investors
Shanghai Composite Index falls 2.5pc, shares in Hong Kong drop 1.4pc per cent, joining a global equity sell-off, as the political turmoil in Italy also ruffled global markets. Hang Seng briefly falls below 30,000 in morning trade
Nearly 3,000 stocks, or 85 per cent of the total pool, fell in price on Wednesday on China’s A-share market, with telecoms and internet sectors sinking the lowest, after Washington caught Beijing off guard and announced it will proceed to impose tariffs on US$50 billion worth of Chinese exports, spooking investors in the world’s second largest equity market.
More than 180 A-share market stocks sank by the daily maximum 10 per cent limit.
Hong Kong stocks also tumbled 1.4 per cent, joining a global equity sell-off, as the political turmoil in Italy also rippled through global markets and sparked an investor flight from riskier assets.
Mainland China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell 2.5 per cent, or 79.02 points, to end Wednesday at 3,041.44 – the biggest daily percentage decline in around two months. It was also the worst closing level it has seen since October 2016.
The Shenzhen Composite Index slid 2.8 per cent to 1,736.34, and the start-up board index ChiNext Price lost 2.7 per cent.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index finished down 1.4 per cent at 30,056.79, briefly slipping below the key 30,000 level in morning trade, while the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index fell 1.6 per cent to 11,769.16. Internet conglomerate Tencent Holdings declined 1.7 per cent to HK$395.00, weighing heavily on the market.