Economy

Markets

Industries

Insights

Reports

Events

Stocks falter another 200 points

By Ding Qi (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2008-06-19 16:25

Just one day after hard-won rise, domestic stocks sank deeper on Thursday as major index lost 192 points to close at another 15-month low, with more than 95 percent of stocks extending their losses.

Settling at 2748.87, the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index slumped 6.54 percent, exceeding Wednesday's 146 point rebound. The Shenzhen Component Index lost 7.49 percent, dropping to 9,161.56 by close.

Turnover of the two exchanges totaled 92.83 billion yuan ($13.49 billion). Of all the stocks traded today, only 63 stocks managed to gain, while a stunning number of 1,574 fell, of which over 800 stocks plunged by the daily limit of ten percent.

Dealers said continuing inflation concerns and weak neighboring markets propelled the panic selling. However, given no policies to stabilize the market, any negative sign or speculation could serve as a blow to the market.

An online survey conducted by financial web portal hexun showed that more than 53 percent of investor portfolios have lost half their value since the beginning of this year. And as high as 69 percent of interviewees think the domestic A-share market may not recover after this unusual slump.

Recent statistics from the China Securities Depository and Clearing Corp also suggest fading confidence as well as funding for the bourses. By 13 June, 47.49 million investors hold stocks in their A-share trading accounts, accounting only for 48 percent of all effective accounts. Those that performed stock trading last week dropped even further to below 10 percent. It showed an increasing number of investors are choosing to leave the disappointing market, not a good sign for the long-term development of China's equity market.