Chinese Stockmarket crisis and how it is a worry

What do the Casino, a dart board, and the Shanghai Stock Exchange all have in common? Luck, and a little bit of skill. It’s important to realize this when you invest in volatile areas. As the heavy, iron wheels of the Chinese economy begin to slow, we, as investors, must think about the repercussions this has on our own economy.

The Chinese and Australian economies are very closely intertwined, as China demands much of Australia’s top exports, Minerals and Education. As a result, the recent Chinese stock market scare has also put fear into the hearts of many Australian investors. So, as an investor, what do you need to know about the Chinese Stock Market crash?

Well, I will summarize in a few brief points:

1. The term “down a third over the past month” to describe the Chinese stock market has been thrown around a lot on the news. However, a figure that they aren’t showing, is the fact that the Chinese stock market is still up 80% over the last year. Which would be amazing growth… for any other country but China.

2. Essentially, the other sectors of the Chinese economy are performing fine, including property and money-markets.

3. It is important to remember that any sort of over-valuation will require correction, and the Chinese stock market was simply over-valued at the time. When I put it like this, you are probably scratching your head, wondering why the entire globe seems to be up in arms about it.

Well, it is the Chinese Government’s response to a relatively common economic phenomena (over-valuation, and subsequent correction), that has investors worried. The Chinese Government decided to cap short-selling and employ central-bank funds to purchase stocks on the Chinese Stock Market.

You don’t need an Economics degree to see why that can have some adverse side-effects. By capping short-selling, the government further raises the price of the listed shares, listed pre-cap, hence distorting the over-valued shares even further, but more probably leading to a decrease in growth, in the long-term. So what does this emphasize?

The importance of valuation, and choice. P2P lending provides an opportunity to invest into companies that you can truly trust and gain full information on their business. It allows you to cross different sectors of the economy, whilst receiving a higher rate of return than most blue-chip stocks on the ASX. But more importantly, it is immune from politics.