BEIJING: The Shanghai Composite index fell to its lowest level since October on Monday, extending a multi-week slide spurred by authorities’ efforts to tame financial risks. The Shanghai Composite was down 1 per cent at 3,075.3 as investors returned from the lunch break and at the lowest level since October 17.
The technology-focused Shenzhen Composite was off 0.9 per cent to a four-month low of 1,854.2. If the index falls another three points, it will be at its lowest level since mid-June last year. Both indices are facing their fifth consecutive day of declines. Investor liquidity has been drying up in recent weeks, with China’s central bank draining cash from the banking system. Short-term lending rates have risen to their highest in two years after President Xi Jinping told a politburo meeting last month that financial security was “strategically important” for the country’s economic and social development.
