Chinese shares fall for third day
Investors are no wiser whether the government will take new steps to prop up the market.
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Hawke’s Bay
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Chinese shares have fallen for a third straight day but investors are no wiser whether the government will take new steps to prop up the market.
Trading yesterday started with heavy losses, taking the Shanghai Composite Index down to 3537.36, just points away from the low reached during a selloff this month that wiped out nearly one-third of the value of the Shanghai market.
But the market bounced back before the midday break, buoyed by large-cap stocks, and traded in a narrower range in the afternoon session.
The Shanghai Composite Index finished down 62.56 points, or 1.7%, at 3663, having fallen as much as 5% and risen as much as 1% earlier. The index has shed 11% since Friday and is down nearly 30% from its mid-June high.
The smaller Shenzhen Composite closed down 48.39 points, or 2.2%, at 2111.70, after falling more than 6% earlier on Tuesday. The smaller cap ChiNext board closed down 101.48 points, or 3.7%, at 2581.96.
The losses are casting doubt on Beijing’s ability to contain a slide that has wiped trillions in value from Chinese equities, and have left investors and analysts wondering what officials might do next to reverse it.
On Monday, a government spokesman said the state’s share-buying agency planned to step up its purchases of stocks after the Shanghai market fell 8.5%, the biggest one-day decline since 2007.
Shares elsewhere in the region fell in early trading but regained ground as the losses in China narrowed.
The Hang Seng Index gained 151.98 points, or 0.6%, to 24503.94, although a gauge of Chinese firms listed in Hong Kong remained down 0.5%.
Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average fell 21.21 points, or 0.1%, to 20,328.89, and Australia’s S&P ASX 200 closed down 5.20 points, also 0.1%, at 5584.70.
South Korea’s Kospi closed marginally higher at 2039.10.
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Nevil Gibson
Wed, 29 Jul 2015
Wed, 29 Jul 2015
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Chinese shares fall for third day
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