By Ding Qi (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2007-08-01 17:12

However, blue chips proved relatively resistant to the correction due to their stable revenue growth. Sinopec declined, but by only 1.48 percent to 13.99 yuan per share. Baoshan Iron & Steel fell 2.22 percent and closed at 13.19 yuan.

Special coverage: Markets Watch Related readings:  Banks' reserve rate raised again  New fund investors outnumber stock investors  Money flows from stocks to property  Reserve ratio hike fails to slow indices

In a related occurrence, stock markets all over the Asia Pacific region suffered similar losses today. The Hang Seng Index of Hong Kong dropped 3.31 percent in the morning session. The Nikkei index closed down 377 points or 2.19 percent. Bourses in South Korea, Singapore, and Taiwan experienced the same. Dealers said the disappointing performance of United States stock market in the past days affected Asia and created panic among investors.

However, drops in neighboring markets could be little more than an excuse for the dive in the A-share market today. Market watchers said the internal requirements for a thorough price correction served as a major factor.

In the past month, the index surged from 3600 points to the all-time high above 4500 points without a decent correction. Some stocks repeated the crazy performances staged before May 30 when the government had to cool excessive speculation with a hike in the stamp tax.

Securities analysts suggested investors not panic about today's plunge. What they need is an overall review of their investment strategy and persistent hopes for the nation's economy in the long run. Assuming indices will continue an overall upward trend, said one analyst, a correction is still indispensable and even helpful in squeezing out blundering profit-taking funds.

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