Mainland, Hong Kong stocks dive

Stock markets in mainland China and Hong Kong tumbled on Monday. The Shanghai Composite Index dropped 6.32% to a 25-month closing low of 1,723.351 points, Reuters reported. Fears of poor corporate third-quarter earnings reports helped trigger the decline. The Shanghai market saw 895 stocks fall and only 34 rise on Monday. More than 350 Shanghai A-shares dropped by the maximum 10% daily limit. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index suffered its biggest one-day fall in more than a decade on Monday, shedding 12.7% of its value. The Hang Seng closed down 1,602.54 points at 11,015.84, its lowest level since mid-2004. It has lost 60% of its value this year. During the day, the index was down 15%, its largest one-day decline since 1997.