Chinese markets finish lower as volatile trading continues
Chinese markets closed lower again today after a brief rally in afternoon trading.
Having breached the 3,000 mark during afternoon trading, the Shanghai Composite closed 1.3 per cent down at 2,926.3 points, marking its fifth consecutive day of decline, while the Shenzhen Composite closed more than three per cent down at 1,695.8 points.
But the session was mainly characterised by volatility, with the Shanghai Composite fluctuating between 2.3 down and 1.2 per cent higher within 15 minutes of its opening.
Meanwhile, Japan’s Nikkei earlier closed 3.2 per cent higher.
This comes after another volatile session yesterday. In an effort to calm market jitters, the People’s Bank of China cut interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point and lowered its capital reserve requirement.
Although Chinese investors remained nervous, the move "has helped calm nerves in markets globally", said Societe Generale macro strategist Kit Juckes.
"Asian equity indices are up across the board this morning and hard-hit currencies are recovering ground."
The decision yesterday boosted European stocks, with the FTSE 100 closing three per cent higher at 6,081. The German Dax closed 5.3 per cent up and France’s Cac ended the day 4.4 per cent up.
However, European markets fell. The FTSE 100 edged above 6,000 points in early trading, but remained around 1.3 per cent lower.
After rebounding yesterday, US stocks tumbled in the final hour of trading to erase their gains. This was Wall Street’s fifth consecutive day of losses.