What’s New: China’s domestic stock market had a record number of new investor registrations in July as more retail investors race to catch the bull market.
More than 2.4 million new investors opened stock trading accounts in July, more than double the figure of the previous month. It also marked the highest monthly increase in new stock investors since July 2015, when the A-share market was hit by a massive selloff.
Background: A rising influx of new investors has jumped into China’s domestic stock market since mid-February as the market picked up a rising trend. Since early July, a surge of new account registrations has caused several brokerages’ systems to crash.
The benchmark Shanghai index surged above the long-held 3,000 points July 1, with daily transaction volume surpassing 1 trillion yuan ($144.4 billion). But the market has fluctuated since then. Analysts cautioned about the market outlook, citing uncertainties from the pandemic and China-U.S. tensions.
Contact reporter Han Wei (weihan@caixin.com) and editor Bob Simison (bobsimison@caixin.com).
