UK economy suffers worst hit in two years as bank predicts recession - latest updates

Investors from around the world are selling China's top stocks in huge amounts, indicating that industry giants in the country are losing popularity due to worries about the economy.

Investors from other countries offloaded 6.2 billion yuan (£676 million) worth of Kweichow Moutai shares between August 7 and 18. As a result, China's biggest producer of alcoholic beverages became the most traded stock through the trading connections with Hong Kong.

LONGi Green Energy Technology, a prominent company in the renewable energy sector, experienced a substantial amount of selling worth 4.7 billion yuan. Additionally, China Merchants Bank, a significant lender, also underwent the same selling activity.

Foreign investors have been pulling their money out of the Chinese market, selling off around £7.3bn worth of investments over a period of twelve days until Tuesday. This consecutive streak of withdrawals is the longest ever recorded by Bloomberg since they started monitoring this data in 2016.

The departure follows China disappointing markets with its recent alterations to interest rates earlier this week.

The second biggest economy on earth is currently facing an extended period of decline in its housing market. As a result, its CSI 300 Index has become one of the weakest performers worldwide this month, suffering a loss of 7%. Currently, it is trading near its lowest point since November.

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Investors in Asian markets were experiencing a mix of emotions as they eagerly anticipated the outcomes from Nvidia, a popular tech company. They were particularly interested to see if the industry's high valuations could endure a sudden increase in bond yields. Furthermore, the downcast factory readings from Japan further weakened overall market sentiment.

The MSCI index for Asia-Pacific stocks, excluding Japan, increased by 0.3%, staying close to its lowest point in nine months, which was reached only two days ago. Additionally, Japan's Nikkei also saw a small gain of 0.3%.

New information released on Wednesday revealed that Japan's manufacturing sector experienced a decline for the third consecutive month in August, providing an initial insight into the overall state of global manufacturing this month. On the same day, the United States will announce its preliminary Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) figures, which are expected to indicate that the manufacturing industry continued to contract.

The interest rate on Japan's 10-year government bond reached a new high of 0.675 percent, the highest it has been in 9 and a half years. This surge can be attributed to investors who saw the Bank of Japan's decision to not intervene and purchase bonds as a signal to continue selling.

In China, the top-performing stocks were unable to maintain their gains from Tuesday, experiencing a decline of 0.9 percent. On the other hand, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index showed more resilience, recording a positive increase of 0.6 percent following a significant jump of 1 percent.

The stock market on Wall Street concluded with a decline on Tuesday due to an increase in the yields of Treasury bonds. This surge in yields has brought about apprehensions regarding the Federal Reserve's decision to potentially maintain higher interest rates for an extended period.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined by 0.5 percent, settling at 34,288.83, while the comprehensive S&P 500 experienced a 0.3 percent decrease, reaching 4,387.55.

The technology-focused Nasdaq Composite Index inched higher by 0.1 percent, concluding at a final reading of 13,505.87.

The 10-year Treasury yield came close to reaching its highest point in 16 years due to concerns about rising interest rates, leading to a significant decrease in bond prices.