Chinese stock markets see biggest drop in a decade
28 February 2007
China's
stock market experienced its biggest drop in a decade on Tuesday, the Financial
Times reported, contributing to a global sell-off which sent US stocks into
their worst slide since September 11. Traders said the 8.8% decline in the
Shanghai Composite Index (SCI) was not triggered by a particular news event but
by institutional investors keen to secure profits on gains made earlier in the
month. On Monday, the SCI rose 1.4% to pass 3,000 points for the first time but
it ended Tuesday at 2,771.791. A total of 835 stocks fell while only 33 rose,
with more than half hitting their 10% limit for daily movement. Talk of
interest rate hikes, securities regulatory chief Shang Fulin leaving his post
and what might come out of the upcoming National People's Congress is also
thought to have played a role in the fall.