Asian stocks down on fears of weak China growth

Shares were down in Asia amid speculation China will bit hit by slower growth.


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By :  ,  Financial Analyst

Asian markets edged down today (September 22nd) as investors worried about slower growth in China’s economy.

The country's finance minister Lou Jiwei said national growth faces downward pressure and added that there won’t be major changes in policy in response to individual economic indicators.

He “gave a real hint that the recent policy easing may actually be quite limited,” Stuart Beavis, head of institutional equity derivatives at Vantage Capital Markets in Hong Kong, told Bloomberg. “We’re not just going to see this wall of money thrown at the Chinese slowdown.”

Mr Lou said in a statement that macroeconomic policy will focus on “comprehensive” targets, particularly job growth and price stability.

The statement follows a series of reports pointing to a slowdown of the world's second economy, with inflation remaining weak in August and industrial output growth at its lowest level since the 2008 global financial crisis. 

The MSCI AC Asia Pacific Index (MXAP) fell 0.7 per cent, while the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index (HSCEI) of mainland companies listed in Hong Kong and the Shanghai Composite Index both fell 1.7 per cent.

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