Summary
Chinese equities saw a broad sell-off to start the week, only to regain a tenuous equilibrium by the end of Wednesday trading. The selling was most pronounced in the tech sector, which has been targeted in an ongoing regulatory crackdown by state authorities. Tencent, China’s largest company by market capitalization, dropped 9% in just one day following an announcement that it had temporarily paused new sign-ups to WeChat in order to “align with all relevant laws and regulators.”
The sell-off reflects growing regulatory pressures both within and without China, which are fueling fears among investors that their capital is at risk of being summarily wiped out, not by market forces, but by the stroke of a pen in Beijing or Washington.