Hot equities market steals thunder from vehicle sales

The stockbroker is beating the car salesman in the battle for Chinese wallets.

With China's stock markets more than doubling in the past year, consumers such as Tom Zhang are deferring big-ticket purchases to chase the rally. The Beijing resident was deciding between a Buick and a Volkswagen Passat before concluding that his 300,000 yuan ($48,000) would be better off in equities. He was right, as his holdings soared to 800,000 yuan in value in little more than a year.

"I feel like I am good at this, that I can make more," Zhang, 26, said as he left a branch of Qilu Securities in Beijing. "Why would I kill the hen when there are more eggs on the way? I can always buy my car later."