The Business Times

China selloff ripples across Asia as equities drop; oil retreats

Published Tue, Jul 28, 2015 · 02:09 AM

[SYDNEY] Asian stocks retreated for a fifth day as the selloff in China deepened. Oil declined, while New Zealand's currency rallied from near a six-year low.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped 1.1 per cent at 10.34am in Tokyo, while the Shanghai Composite Index sank 3.2 per cent. Futures on the Standard & Poor's 500 Index were little changed after the measure capped its longest losing streak since January. Crude dropped 0.7 per cent in New York, while copper futures rose 0.7 per cent.

New Zealand's kiwi strengthened 0.5 per cent against the dollar China's stock market plunged the most in eight years on Monday amid speculation that government efforts to prop up shares are unsustainable.

The selloff - the worst of which came after markets in Tokyo and Seoul closed - is spurring concern that financial-market turmoil will curb expansion in the world's second-largest economy. The UK reports economic growth on Tuesday, while measures of US house prices and consumer confidence are due.

"Extreme caution is needed here," said Matthew Sherwood, the Sydney-based head of investment strategy at Perpetual Ltd, which manages A$33 billion (S$32.7 billion). "There is a lot of global weakness and significant external risk."

The S&P 500 declined 0.6 per cent at the close in New York, falling for a fifth day. European stocks sank 2.2 per cent and emerging-market shares lost 2 per cent. That followed an 8.5 per cent slide in the Shanghai Composite as Chinese industrial company profits shrank in June.

Stocks with heavy exposure to China slumped in New York trading. Apple Inc. slipped 1.4 per cent, after its worst week in six months. Alibaba Group Holding Ltd retreated 2 per cent. Baidu Inc, China's largest search engine, lost 4.2 per cent. The company tumbled about 6 per cent further in extended trading after posting second-quarter profit that missed estimates.

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