In London and New York, shares lost 3 percent, while Paris and Germany dropped around 2.4 percent. Prices on the Shanghai market fell drastically at Tuesday's open, but regained some strength to close at a loss of just over 1 percent, as Chinese officials insisted the situation was under control. China's official manufacturing index for August fell slightly to its lowest level since 2012. A survey by Markit, which focuses on smaller private firms, showed factory activity at the weakest performance level in 6½ years.
China is evolving from an export-driven manufacturing economy toward one based more on services and domestic demand. The world's second-largest economy also is struggling with market-oriented reforms intended to make it more efficient and productive. China has been an engine of economic growth for many years, so changes, and setbacks there, ripple through the global economy, affecting stock and commodity prices in particular.
Bumpy ride
The developments have been so significant that Japan’s finance minister, Taro Aso, suggested Tuesday that the Chinese economy be a focus of this week’s meeting of the Group of 20 major economies. Aso said that instead of being swayed by superficial market moves, he believes it is important to understand the structural issues affecting markets in China. “I think it’s beneficial to hold a frank debate at G20 on what is happening in the Chinese economy,” Aso said.
During a visit to Indonesia Tuesday, International Monetary Fund Director Christine Lagarde urged emerging economies to be vigilant for spillovers from China’s slowdown. Lagarde said China’s slowdown was not sharp or unexpected. But it's clear, she said, that the country is adjusting to a new growth model. "The transition to a more market-based economy and the unwinding of risks built up in recent years is complex and could well be somewhat bumpy," she said. An official at China’s National Development and Reform Commission, the country’s top economic planning agency, said Tuesday that stock market volatility had been contained, and that the country could push forward with market reforms.
Sentiment sinking