Chinese stocks plunged on unimpressive loan data, sending global markets lower
A
positive lead from Wall Street failed to lift stocks in Asia, as oil continued to slide and liquidity concerns out of China sparked renewed fears over the health of the mainland economy. The Shanghai Composite tanked 3.5%, putting it in bear market territory. Meanwhile, Japan's Nikkei gave up early gains to lose 0.5%, as a stronger yen weighed on exporters. Elsewhere, Hong Kong's Hang Seng and South Korea's Kospi gave back 1.5% and 1.1%, respectively.
China's sell-off and oil's rout are pressuring European markets sharply lower at midday. Adding to traders' risk-off appetite is weakness in the mining sector, after BHP Billiton was hit with a $7.2 billion pre-tax impairment charge on its U.S. assets. At last check, London's FTSE 100 is off 1.4%, the French CAC 40 has slipped 1.3%, and Germany's DAX is down 1.8%.
