Stocks Slump As Protests In China Spook Investors

Chinese assets slumped overnight as a sense of chaos and uncertainty gripped traders amid growing COVID-19 protests across the country, Chris Price reported for The Telegraph.

Photo Insert: Protests spread over the weekend as citizens in major cities including Beijing and Shanghai took to the streets to express their anger on the nation’s COVID controls.

The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index declined more than 4 pence in early trading before pulling back its losses by about half.

The Chinese yuan was consigned to a more than two-week low against the safe-haven dollar, down 0.6 pence against the greenback, having plunged more than 1 pence at the open, the most since May.

Protests spread over the weekend as citizens in major cities including Beijing and Shanghai took to the streets to express their anger on the nation’s COVID controls. The rare show of defiance is raising the threat of a government crackdown, prompting investors to re-think their bets after jumping back in on reopening hopes.

"We might see some derisking around Chinese markets," said Chris Weston, head of research at Pepperstone Group.

"We are seeing some outflows of the offshore yuan, which I think is a pretty good indication of how Chinese markets may fare." The pound has recouped its overnight losses against the dollar as traders digested the impact of the widespread protests against COVID restrictions in China.

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